Apples
by Merci Monsieur
Summary: With finding a Death Note, Lindsey also finds her past, tucked away in memories and ashes. Her life is turned up-side down; she is forced in a corner, forced to make decisions, forced to face an unholy truth- that gravity has no mercy.
1. Little One

**BEFOREHAND AUTHOR'S NOTE:** Okay, so _this _fic here that you've clicked on is a pretty nice one indeedy:) It's one of my favorites (not my actual favorite, but it's a top one) that I've written, in fact. It's about a girl who finds a Death Note^^ Now, this fic takes you on a journey of one year of her life. See, in this one year, this girl grows and discovers things:D Please hear the mock tone in my voice c: Anywho, romance is a bit slow to start, simply because the story begins on November 27th. Tell me what's so special about that date! Do you know? Review! Hehe asking for those before the story even starts x] But anywhoo~~ There _is_ a meaning to this date, however miniscule it might be:) Aaaaaaaannnnd... the first couple chapters take you through her life before the actual canon events of Death Note 'hit close to home' for our little OC in here. I guarantee you'' definitely have something to say about this story when it's all said and done; whether it's "I LOVE IT!1!1!11!" or "go die -_-" is up to you! Ummm... trying to think of anything else... oh! And it's got some mystery, definitely suspense, definitely drama, some romance- but really this story is pretty serious. If you're wanting one of those fics with romance slapping you in your face, then you're out of luck. Sorry, but that's hot how life is, ergo that's not how this story is. This story delves into the psyche of the OC and her best friend, into Light's a bit, I think... aaaaaannnnd... yeah. So, it's pretty serious. Sorta xD But don't worry! The OC's not a bucket of gloom and neither is this sto- oh, who'm I kidding? It's Death Note! That manga has depression and angst written all over it XDXDXDXDXD But, there is a ray of sunshine, do not fret! And everything I'm telling you in this crappin' long A/N (which will never happen again, by the by XD) is void of any big fat spoilers in here. Just warning you about the lack of blatant romance and the other stuffz that shall be in this fic:3 Um... I think I should stop it here... I'm like Light sometimes: I like to hear myself talk ;) But not too often. I'm just being anal now xD So... read on, if I haven't killed you already!

:3

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><p><strong>-ChApTeR oNe-<strong>

**lItTlE oNe**

_The apple doesn't fall far from the tree..._

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><p>I thought I would have to put up with the filth of the world forever.<p>

I thought there was no way to change the world.

No way to bring justice to the innocent;

No way to prosecute those who got away;

No way to prove that the righteous would not be snuffed out nor defeated by the wretched;

I thought this was the fate the world was doomed to.

Well, I thought wrong...

~***X***~

It was a sunny day in late November. The rays of golden sunlight felt welcoming on my skin, though the bitter wind protested such comfort; not a single cloud in the sky to tell of any raging storms that might blow in later from the coast. It was a lie, and a good one at that, but a lie nonetheless. It seemed even mother nature liked to play tricks on the world. Well, humanity had to get its traits from somewhere, I supposed.

I was walking to a local grocery store, in great need of diner before my roommate came home. My feet quietly tapped against the sidewalk while my body heat started picking up. People were bustling around me, chattering on their phones, clinging to suit cases or purses; some were standing idly, puffing on their cancer sticks, as I liked to call them. I took quick steps, my black converse making muted _tamp tamp tamp tamps _on the ground beneath me.

I soon left the business end of town, but remained on a busy block. There were many venders and small shops around me. Some were clean, owned by angry shop owners and others weren't so easy on the eyes, but the people who ran the stores were nice enough. The shop I had my eye on was in a squat, run down building located at the end of the road. The man who owned it was called Shugo. He was in his mid-thirties, though he looked twice that age. His wife had died a few years before in a car accident. I never met the woman, but from the stories he told of her she sounded like a lovely person.

"Hero, Rindsey," Shugo smiled at me as I entered his store.

"Still working on your English Shugo-san?" I smiled, speaking in Japanese, and stepped up to the counter, my list of groceries in hand. He nodded his head.

"Yes. I wish to practice for move to America," he took the list from my hand, still speaking in English, and pulled out slabs of meat from the display case.

"Why would you leave me, Shugo? And all alone in such a big city?" I pouted, indirectly challenging him with my British accented English. He looked up, slightly panicked.

"Of course not, miss Stevensu! There is simply more profit in America!" He shook his head, fixing me with worry. "You have friend, yes?" I nodded my head, smiling.

"Yes, yes; I have my friend," he smiled in response and began to cut the meat in the appropriate size for the wanted weight. I turned to my left, moving counter-clockwise around the tiny shop, picking out fruits, vegetables, and sweets that I liked. After I hit the 'four' on the clock, Shugo called me over to the counter, all sorts of different meats in their sacks. "Thank you, Shugo," I handed him the food I had acquired, a small arm full.

"And this, miss Stevensu?" I nodded my head and waited as he punched several numbers in his cash register, sacked them, and called the price. I handed him the money and left with a wave over my shoulder and a smile.

Walking down the street, I hummed a quiet tune below my breath. I had nothing special to do that day; being a Thursday, I didn't have any classes and I was off from work that night. I worked at a local bar with my best friend and roommate. A yawn interrupted my song and I quickly lost my focus.

I decided to take the long way home (if you could call a squashed apartment in a squashed building a home) through an abandoned park. It was quiet. Birds chirped; I could hear the faint hum of cars in the distance. It was eerily perfect and I didn't mind it a bit. And then, on the sidewalk behind me, I heard a quiet _slap._ It was the sound of something having been dropped.

I stopped immediately and turned around, looking curiously for the source of the noise, ill-fitting in the scene around me. Only a few steps behind me, I saw a simple white notebook exactly where my feet had been hitting the sidewalk moments before. I readjusted my black messenger bag and walked briskly toward the notebook.

I beamed at the thin and pale notebook and saw on the cover two simple words written in elegant writing: _Death Note. _

I cocked an eyebrow, looking down my gently up-turned nose at the notebook. I knelt before the little thing, my bag slumped on the tidy ground beside me, propped up against my leg. Turning my head to the side, a strand of burgundy hair fell across my nose and in front of my scrutinizing, brown eyes. My lips puckered as I examined it.

"What _are _you doing out here, mister random and most _curious _notebook?" I asked the apparently inanimate and lifeless notebook. "Not much, my dear," I played the role of the notebook with a higher pitched voice than my own, "simply enjoying this lovely day. Gorgeous out, wouldn't you say?" I shook my head. "I quite disagree. I much prefer the rain." I blew out a great puff of air, causing the stray strand of hair to shift and stab me in the eye. I winced, my eye automatically watering, and brushed it regretfully behind my ear with the rest of my hair. I shook my head again, this time slowly. "I'm going mad..." I mumbled quietly to myself.

The notebook did not speak to me again.

I moved a hand from upon my knee and picked it up gingerly between my thumb and forefinger. It was quite an awkward position and caused my hand to cramp, but I thought it prudent; even if this book was a scam, I wanted to be careful about it in case anything else was off other than what the titled indicated. I was cautious as I turned it around in the air and puckered my lips again, thoroughly investigating the outside of the notebook.

It seemed like any normal notebook, save for the... rather _unique _title upon it. Like I believed that rubbish, though. The notebook itself was slightly cruddy and rough and was covered in a generous amount of what seemed to be dust, the whiteness of it faded-looking because of this. I slid a finger across the lower left hand corner of the notebook and held it in front of my face, examining the minerals. I cocked my head slightly and rubbed it between my thumb and forefinger and sniffed it.

"Smeeeeeells liiiiike... hmm... Dirt, most deffly, aaaaaaannnnnnnd..." I turned my finger over and blew on it. "Aye; that's deffly rust," I nodded curtly and wiped my fingers on my jeans. I then held the notebook at the level of my naval and watched it menacingly. I opened the cover and looked within for about a full two seconds, then snapped the thing shut.

I stood, stuffed it in my book bag, and hurried home.

~***X***~

The lock to my apartment door clunked as I turned the brass key within. The tumblers ground and I moved my hand to turn the rusty door knob. Several flecks of green fell on the carpeted floor of the less-than-beautiful hallway as I slammed my shoulder into the unwilling door. It finally gave in after two attempts, both of which sounded like small explosions. I kicked the door shut behind me, then swung around and locked it.

_Better safe than sorry_, I mouthed as I tossed my keys onto the slender table within the entry way on my right. They clattered and nearly fell to the floor, but halted to a stop just at the edge of the fake cherry oak surface. I dumped my bag beside the skinny legs and turned for the cramped kitchen at my left, dropping the sacks beneath the sink.

Dishes were piled up on all of the counters and in the sink. Particles of food, whole chunks and slices of pizzas and pies; halves of hot dogs and burgers; and chip bags were scattered among the plates. A few roaches skittered about, disappearing at random back to their hiding places, wherever that may have been. It was at the top of my list to do the dishes, clean the kitchen, and buy insecticide. Obviously, I cared very little for my priorities.

I turned to the refrigerator and opened it, emptying the contents of the sacks into the refrigerator. Fish and ground beef were just some of the meat amongst strawberries, bananas, and a watermelon. I smiled, happy to actually have food in the house. It wasn't every day there was something to eat. Some days, my friend and I didn't have anything to eat at all. Her parents might have gladly sent us a check that would open the eyes of Nobel Peace Prize winning scientist, but she and I felt too independent for accepting such a thing.

I pulled the notebook from my waiting bag as I walked into the living room, to the left of the kitchen. I sat in the chair before my computer desk, white lap top sitting shut in the middle. I pushed the computer to the very back and set the Death Notein its place. I held my hands nervously in my lap, curious about the rest of the contents. If the first thing -no, the first 'rule'- of the notebook said, 'the human whose name is written in this note shall die,' then what did the rest of it have to say? I opened it slowly and read through the rest of the rules written within in a similar hand of writing as was on the cover.

"'This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his or her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected...' 'If the cause of death is written within forty seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen...'" The rest of the rules carried on much in the same fashion, describing all of the specifics of how to kill a person with the notebook. I was left with a feeling of foreboding and a chilling anxiety upon finishing all of the rules. I couldn't one hundred percent believe it, but... the thought of _what if? _kept dancing circles around my mind. I thought long and hard about the whole thing... I thought of the different ways I could use it; I thought of all the people I could kill... That notebook... it was the most dangerous weapon on Earth. Any person could use it for personal gain, for the betterment of the planet, or for the absolute destruction of it. Someone could recreate the Holocaust with it- _do worse, _in fact!

I was left staring at it with wide, terrified eyes.

This book could get you anything you wanted.

I shut it and sat there, watching it curiously for what felt like an eternity. I was completely and utterly disturbed by the prospect of such a thing existing. I then looked down at my hands and saw they were shaking. Upon this realization, I laughed aloud at myself and the notebook. It was a hollow, mocking laugh with no real sense about it. I let out a shaky breath.

Did I really just believe such a thing? Was I really scared by such a preposterous idea? This was a hoax! A simple prank by some group of stupid kids that wanted to get into somebody's head! That was exactly it and I was playing into their hands- whether they knew it or not. In fact, I decided, they were probably laughing at me this very moment. But a quiet voice in my head queried, "but what if it's real?" And I stopped laughing immediately, again entranced by it.

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_

Three loud explosions behind me caused me to jump out of my skin and the chair. I looked around, clutching the notebook as a shield to my chest.

"Hello? Lindsey! Are you home? I can't get this bloody door open, d'you mind helping? Helloooo~" Eyes wide, I quickly understood what had happened. It was Tatum, my roommate. She was home from her classes and was simply trying to open the unopenable door. I laughed out loud again and took a few trembling steps toward the door. "Lindse-"

"Y-yeah, I'm here! Gi... just gimme' a second, eh!" I called to the door and heard her chirp her compliance. I walked the threshold of the small living room and into the entry way. Just as I held out my hand to open the door I saw a glimpse of the white notebook in my other hand. I immediately panicked, not wanting Tatum to see such a thing. What was I to do with it? She was right there; where could I hide it? I felt dread and stupidity fall upon me. How come I hadn't though of it before?

"Lindsey, hurry! My bag is killing my back," she moaned from behind the door.

"Uh, sorry!" I chucked the notebook into my messenger bag and pulled the door open, with great struggle at that. Tatum came bursting in, short and pink spiky hair and all. She was your classic punk rock kid, though she didn't have the personality of one. She was much like a chihuahua in all honesty, though not nearly as feisty.

"_Ahhhh! _What took you so long, Lindsey? I was _dying _out there, blimey!" She dropped the bag onto the floor next to mine. A corner of the Death Note poked out and I squeaked, "look-y what I bought today! It's why I'm late," she pulled a little square book -a manga, I think they were called. I held my hands behind my back as she threw off her shirt and tossed it onto the couch in the living room, going to put a lounge shirt on, as she called her tattered, worn, and faded band-T's. I kicked the notebook down and breathed a sigh of relief, thankful for her ignorance.

"Oh, really? You haven't picked up a book since highschool, I don't think," I laughed.

"Words hurt, Lindsey. You're always so cruel to me..." She called from the bedroom as she slipped on a shirt with a creepy looking 'S' on the front of it, stepping into the living room. I sat at my computer. "Anyway... it was referred to me by a friend,"

"Ah, that's nice. What's it about?" I turned on a game of Tetris.

"Mmm... a guy named Rin Okumura. He's the son of Satan. Gets into this school called True Cross Academy as a cover for being in training to become an excorcist so he can _kill _Satan. Pretty interesting," she opens up the manga, seated on the couch with her legs crossed.

"Yeah... interesting," I laughed again, hitting the left arrow on my keyboard, totally screwing up my game.

"How was your day?" Tatum asked absentmindedly, flipping open to a page in her book.

"Oh, you know... boring," I shrugged and pulled open the lap top, hitting the power button. She cocked her head, catching my anxiety.

"Are you sure? You look a little... off?" For some reason, the 'direction' of the conversation seemed to catch Tatum's interest.

"Bad cheesecake?"

"_Oh_," she groaned, "just tell me! Was it a guy? A teacher? _Tell meeee!"_ She was sitting on the couch, bouncing up and down as she begged to hear of the woes of my day. Damn it, _why _did she have to be ignorant about the Death Note itself, but not of how I felt? Were we really that close that she could practically _smell _my lies? I inwardly groaned. I was a great liar though, so this situation wasn't _too _much of a snag. It just hurt my conscience to lie to her.

"I...I... I got a B on a quiz in my psychology class..." I lied, putting up a good face. She believed me; obviously, for she looked at me as though I were a complete idiot. I turned and faced my computer, blushing. I didn't really act this way about getting a B. It was a _B! _Not the end of the world... but, I had to go along with it, or else I would be caught.

And I would _not _be caught with a murder notebook.

"_Seriously? _D'you know how jealous I am of your grades already?" She went on into a rant about how perfect I was and I smiled and nodded the whole time, inserting false complaints about myself occasionally. After about half an hour of this she stood up and popped her back.

"Okay, Lindsey. I've got to head off to the bar. It's about my shift now. I'll see you tomorrow!" She chirped and went into her bedroom to change again. I waved as she left and jumped up, crossing the living room once more to my messenger bag. I pulled out the notebook and went to my computer desk, repeating my actions from earlier.

I watched it for a couple seconds, half-expecting it to attack me, maybe. I bit my lip nervously and took a deep breath. I decided it was time to wear my big girl panties, and so I put them on and opened it up to the first blank page. The only thing about that was, it wasn't entirely blank. Right smack in the middle, it read:

_Misa Amane_

My finger played at my lips again as I screwed them up, a bell ringing inside my head; however, the lights inside were not on. The name sounded so familiar... I opened up my lap top, moving the notebook to my lap. The screen asking for the password popped up and I obliged.

_OfcourseIdon'trequireapassword.I'macollegestudent,youinsufferablegit!_

Simple enough, I smiled.

The browser loaded and soon enough I was on the internet, typing in the girl's (her gender was easy enough to deduce) name. Within moments my question was answered. Misa Amane was a model and an up-and-coming actress of only nineteen. The key word being "was." She apparently died of heart attack a couple hours before I picked up the notebook. I gasped and looked down at her name written within.

"That was _not _me!" I told the notebook. Thoughts were flying through my head as realization dawned on me: this notebook was not a joke at all. "'The human whose name is written in this note shall die...'" I felt like crying for some reason at that moment. I didn't want something so terrible in my hands. It killed an innocent girl. Who would want to kill her? And why? Surely she hadn't done anything to upset anyone. Then again, that in itself wasn't totally true. She might have done something petty to upset somebody, they killed her and dumped the notebook, maybe hoping for another person to stumble upon it and be blamed for the crime.

"The bloody git! Trying to make _me _the scapegoat?" I shrieked at the notebook. I sighed and looked down at it, not knowing what to do with it. "Well, it's not _your _fault, now is it?' I sighed and stroked the page with Misa Amane's name written upon it. I actually felt bad for the poor thing. Surely it didn't want a life of unjust murder. But then, what was _I _to do with it? I puckered my lip, completely stumped.

"This isn't fair," I whined, "but that's just my luck, now isn't it? Only _I _could stumble upon such a ludicrous thing..." I began twiddling with my lips again, still staring at the notebook. I looked at the bottom right hand side of the computer screen and saw it was a little after five, which gave me a sense of relief. That was a reasonable time to take a shower, something to get my mind off of the notebook. And so I stood up and put the notebook on top of my computer.

"I'm going to take a shower. I'll be back shortly, little one," and entered the bathroom, stripping my clothes as I shut the door.

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><p><strong>lItElE oNe<br>**

**-EnD cHaPtEr OnE-**

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><p><strong>AN:** So that's the first chappie^^ Any British people want to help me out and give me a schooling on the vocabulary and/or grammar of Lindsey's talkage? I would much appreciate it TT^TT All the stuff here I got from Harry Potter, so... XDXD But be nice and review for me! It'll make me feel good and upload faster:D

Also, I quoted Near and Mello in this^^ Anyone care to guess which two lines were used? :D

Merci~

**EDIT (9.7.11): **So, I decided to rewrite the first couple chapters I had posted. This needed to be so, so the rest of everything could make sense xD Anywho. I like the way I wrote this one better xP AND DID SOME PEOPLE CATCH THE REFERENCES? I changed it to where she went to a shop and talked to a guy named Shugo. Anyone ever hear of .hack? Jah^^ And then Tatum got a manga? Blue Exorcist anyone? Ao no Exocist? AnoE? AnE? Whatever you fannerds of it call it xD Anyway ;3 just thought I'd have fun with that. Anywhoo~~


	2. Life's Not Fair

**-ChApTeR tWo-**

**lIfE's NoT fAiR**

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><p>The warm spray of the shower glided down my back as I turned around, wringing out my hair, suds slipping lazily down my legs. I stepped toward the bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash, lost in my nonexistent thoughts. I picked up a half-empty bottle of forest green and squirted out the creamy substance, a bit larger in circumference than a quarter. After finishing my hygienic shower kick (which only happened once every couple of days, or when I felt particularly stressed [like now, I groaned]), I went back into the living room to face my fears.<p>

Or not.

I picked up the notebook and moved to toss into my bag. I stared down at the black mass, hands on both hips, and thought about what I should do with it.

Should I kill somebody? Should I give it to the police? Should I destroy it so something this horrible can never be used again. But wait... wait... if this was a shinigami's notebook... a god of death... _a _god and not _the _god... then wouldn't there be multiple gods of death, ergo multiple notebooks. Meaning this could happen again. Some other shinigami could... lose their notebook, I guess, leaving another person to be in the same situation as me, debating over whether they should use it or not.

But who would feel the same hesitation as me in not tuning it in? Certainly not Tatum. She wasn't the kind of person to go mindlessly killing people because they owe her fifty bucks, or they gave her a B on a quiz, or dumped her for someone else. No, Tatum would give this notebook to the police, whether they believed her or not. She would not let something as sinister as this exist in her life. Or mine. And then I felt extremely guilty for not feeling the same protection for her as she would for me in the first place.

"Mister notebook, I feel bad about this, but... d'you mind staying in my bag for the night? I really can't think about this at the moment," I pouted and looked at the bag sadly, "I'm really sorry. I have homework, too. _Sorry_. G'night."

For the rest of the night, I was actually able to concentrate on the paper due for my behavioral science class. I was able to force myself to read about a person's body language and how it contradicts with their lies for a full hour. I even managed to finish my paper, which surprised me. It wasn't due until Monday, but I was happy enough with having a free weekend. And as I was collecting all of my papers and text books from atop my computer desk, I froze. This weekend. Oh... no.

"Nooooooo," I moaned, "no, no, no, no. No, no, no, no, no!" I dropped a book on the desk, causing a humongous explosion to sound in the otherwise silent apartment. I jumped, a feeling of burning anxiety coiling around my stomach. Tatum would make sure this weekend meant hell. I moaned, and let my shoulders sag, completely at a loss for what to do. Well, I supposed, humoring her wouldn't hurt a thing.

I made myself diner and watched another movie before standing and finishing up the packing of my things. I decided it was time I closed my eyes and sleep, hopefully forgetting the woes of my day that seemed to have been saving themselves up and multiplying when I wasn't looking. I stepped into the kitchen and reached up for a cabinet beside the open wall and pulled out an ugly, burnt orange bottle of blue pills. I took two with a swig of bottled water and headed off to my bedroom. With the thick red blanket covering me like six feet of dirt, I shut my eyes at last.

~***X***~

I always enjoyed walking home. It was a nice, purgatory-type time. I didn't really have any obligations in those moments. And that's how I always looked at it. Not thinking about where I was going, just enjoying the time of walking. I usually passed by a lot of people on my way to and fro. I much enjoyed reading each one, practicing my skills as a behavioral analyst. It was a fun little game, deciphering their feelings, and giving each person a story that might actually have been near their true situation.

It took me about ten minutes, but I finally made it through the shimmering skyscrapers and into the poorer portion of the area; my apartment was located there. I sighed, feeling tired for some odd reason. I blinked once, and then bumped into a person. My bag fell to the ground and I groaned. I then quickly recalled the Death Note. I gasped an dlunged for my bag, yanking it up. I excused myself and began to hustle my way home. I glanced behind me every so often, afraid that he might possibly have seen into my bag. My gut burned as I forced myself to take a deep breath.

"Breath, Lindsey," I sighed, "just breath..." I pulled out my iphone, deciding to play Tetris to divert my attention elsewhere.

~***X***~

"'Looooo, Tatum," I smiled as I entered the apartment. I dumped my bag beside the end table, unconcerned about it.

"Hi~!" She called as I moved around her obstructive form to sit at my computer desk, eyes trained on my phone. Everything was quiet for a few more moments before Tatum decided to speak up again.

"Lindsey, eh, d'you want to go _shopping _today?" Tatum's smile was broad and pearly as she walked over to me and wrapped her arms around my shoulders, resting her chin on one of her forearms. I stayed focused on my phone, in the middle of a wonderful (read: I was losing like nobody's bloody business) game of Tetris.

"Why would I want to go shopping _today?" _I asked playfully. "It's just a regular Friday," I drawled and tapped a button on the screen of my phone, landing a blue "L" shaped block in a quite awkward looking position. I inwardly groaned. I had never been much good at Tetris, though I always loved the game.

"You're kidding! November twenty-eighth? _Ring any bells, love?" _She picked her head up and prodded the side of my own. I winced and shrugged her off.

"Shh! The neighbors might hear!" I jokingly scolded. "I'm in the middle of a-" she ripped the phone from my hands, turned it off, and chucked it for the couch.

"What- the- _heeeeeell, _Tatum!"

"It's your birthday! For the last two years we've been in Japan you've avoided going out on your birthday! It's just not bloody fair to yourself!" She pouted and plopped down on the couch behind me. "And all you do is study-"

"I'm in college, Tater! I've gotta' study if I want to get a decent job at the FBI," I turned sideways in the wooden chair, looking at her stubbornly. She crossed her arms over her large chest.

"That's not fair. Can't you take one day off from studying? If not for yourself, for me? Your best friend, eh?"

I blinked and looked at her. I then sighed in defeat.

"_Fiiiiiine_..." I swiveled around and turned on my lap top. "You still screwed me over in Tetris. I was doing _so good_," I whined.

"Tetris... isn't that what you get when you cut yourself with something rusty?"

"And that's why you're a bartender and not in To-Oh," I laughed as the screen asking for the password faded into view.

"You're so cruel!" She cried. "So, when can we go out? It's four, soooo~?"

I sighed.

"Fine. Fine. We can go now..." I stood up and checked the pockets of my black skinny jeans for my wallet. Finding it, I made my way to the couch, begrudgingly picking up my phone.

"Yay! We're going to have so much fun! And don't worry about buying stuff. It's all on me!" Tatum smiled gleefully and threw off her hot pink tank top, totally bra-less. By now, I've become desensitized to her half-naked tromps around the apartment. Living with such an eccentric person, especially since age thirteen, tended to do that to a person. "Let me just go get a new shirt! Oh, and I need new pants, too. These smell like pot from the bar last-" her voice trailed off as she disappeared into the bedroom.

I played Tetris on my phone in the entry way as I waited patiently.

"Okay~! Let's go!" Tatum stepped out of the bedroom with a black band-T and a pair of stark white skinny jeans that nearly blinded me with their gamma ray intensity.

"Sure you don't want to be seen from Pluto, not just Jupiter, miss sun-light-sun-bright?" I teased, unlocking the door. It was always easier to leave then to enter. I was honestly baffled about that as I locked the curious door behind me, following Tatum to the elevator. I planned on keeping an eye on that door for any further suspicious activity.

"By the by, what _is _Tetris? It sounds terrifying..."

"You lived a sheltered life, didn't you?"

"You lived with me for six years of it, you _better _know I was," she hit the button for the lobby and we took off for our shopping trip. I kept trying to forget the reason for it, though, not wanting to contemplate such a horror. I was turning twenty-two. Crap, I remembered.

I felt like weeping right then.

~***X***~

"So, how was work last night?" I made conversation with Tatum as we walked down the crowded street of Aoyama. Tatum was skipping happily beside me, a couple shopping bags already hanging from her slim and milky forearms. Her hair was the only part of her body that _wasn't _in motion, being so short and gelled so intensely to stand on end. It was also a glowing pink, even more vibrant than her pants, if that were even physically possible. She sighed and looked at me sideways, holding onto her smile as hard as she could.

"Well... remember that guy I told you about the other day? The one that keeps hitting on me? Well, I always tell him no and to leave me alone, _but he just won't. _It's so annoying! And last night, when I was clearing some tables in the back, he- he cornered me and pi-pinned me against the wall... his breath was _horrible_ and I was petrified. I-I couldn't move or do anything..." she trailed off and looked ashamedly at the ground, finally having lost her smile. I felt an automatic pang of guilt and anger, both at myself, though the latter also aimed at the pervert who attacked Tatum.

"What happened? Did he do anything to you?" I could feel my fists ball at my sides, though I cared more for her next response than anything else around me. If something else happened to her... I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes, knowing what she was going to say. My shoulders loosened as I felt helpless when she looked up at me, her mouth slightly open.

"N-no, but..." I let out a gigantic sigh of relief, but then felt livid as I could concentrate more on how to torture the guy before committing the most brutal murder I could imagine. Tatum might have been a year older than me, but I was definitely the big sister in our relationship.

"But what?" I prompted.

"...but he did hit me when I managed to wriggle away. That's when I called security and then _they_ called the police." She flushed and looked around nervously as I cocked my head, piecing together everything,"b-but let's get on with the shopping trip! I feel horrible for being such a downer- and on your birthday, too!" I winced. "Lindsey... let me make it up to you! Do you want anything from this shop here?" I stared at her for a second, analyzing. She didn't want me to see any less of her, but not more either. She was greatly conflicted. I decided that obliging her would work best to better her mood.

So for the rest of the afternoon, we shopped and bought to our hearts' content. I was correct in (and also proud of) my decision (and analyzation) to go along with the change of subject, for her mood made a right angel upward as we walked into the shop she had pointed out. In there, she bought me a nice club dress to wear, lovely electric blue heels, and a glittering silver chain necklace with a locket in the shape of a heart on it. We planned on putting a picture of us in it. I bought one for her, pink instead of silver, behind her back. From there, we went to a shoe store and bought three pairs each. She had _obviously _been saving up this money for a very long time. There was no other way she could have splurged like she did that afternoon if she hadn't.

"This is the best birthday I've had siiiiince..." I thought on it for a moment. Tatum looked up at me, her lips puckered on the straw she was drinking from. She scrutinized me as I took a bite of my English muffin. It was a damn fine one, too. "Since my sweet sixteen when the Brickers bought me my first car," I smiled and nodded my head in resolution. She stopped slurping on the straw and looked up at me with chastising eyes.

"Lindsey, _how many times have we had to tell you? _Call them mum and dad! You've lived with us since you were thirteen. It's only fair," she whined.

"Life's not fair, Tater. Deal with it," she stuck her tongue out at me, "now, shall we go home? It's almost seven, I do believe." I stood up, Tatum following suit.

"You know, December's looking good," Tatum said approvingly with a smug look about her.

"Why? Got your eye on somebody?" I nudged her gently as we walked along the sidewalk at a kind pace, not in any kind of rush. She rolled her eyes about, purposefully looking suspicious. I sniggered and poked her side. "Come _on, _Tater! You have to ell me these things!" I sang into her ear. She looked at me from the corner of her eye, setting up the scene with great suspense. I cocked an eyebrow, understanding everything. She scoffed.

"See, I hate when you read me! It's like you're reading my mind, not my body," she whined and took another sip of her drink.

"_Tatum_!"

"Oh, alright. Yeah, there's a little someone I've been seeing at the bar... besides the creep-o I mentioned earlier," I looked at her worriedly, "_which comes with __the__ job! _Chill, chill! You work their too, you know..."

"Yeah, but I don't get attacked by creepers!"

"You're just not as sexy," she stuck her tongue, her body radiating the phrase, na nany boo-boo.

"Tatum! You're so mean! It's not my fault I'm not a stick like _somebody,_" I playfully threw my head in her direction, eyeing her with emphasis.

"It's not like the Sims, Lindsey," Tatum laughed, "I can't just _select _a body type!"

"Yeah, but you can choose your job."

"Oh, shut it. If I didn't have that job, you wouldn't be having the best birthday of your life." She stuck up her nose and walked on, me laughing behind her.

"Well, a car's pretty nice, Tatum. Just a couple pairs of shoes and a hoe-y looking dress can't really rival that..." I teased. "Get what I'm _hinting _at, little Tater Tot?" She punched my arm and glared.

"D'you know how annoying that is? I'm fine with Tater, but I thought you grew out of 'Tater Tot!'" She spat out the pet name that I actually quite fancied. I smirked.

"You're way too easy, Tater. Way too easy," and then I was the one walking home all smug, ignoring Tatum's pitiful attempts at one-upping me.

* * *

><p><strong>lIfE's NoT fAiR<strong>

**-EnD cHaPtEr TwO-**

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **So, this chapter is basically some more dialogue between the characters, setting up the plot and whatnot, questions about Tatum, and Lindsey, and blahblahblah. So yeah...

And! Since all of you were so eager and enthusiastic about answering my questions last time around (close, Matto xD) I'll go ahead and give you the answers:) November 27th is the day before Light picks up the Death Note (meaning Light picked it up in this chapter! *le gasp*), Near calls the Death Note the most dangerous weapon Earth, and Mello calls it the murder notebook:) Please don't be afraid to drop a review with constructive criticism (flames will be used to make me laugh, so they're invited also)! Anything helps:)

Oh, I also referenced L in this chapter, in a weird sort of way:3

* * *

><p><strong>EDIT (912/11): **Now their schedules make sense! Hehe This story is taking me longer than I though to write xD Oh well. Remember to review!

Merci~


	3. Merry Christmas

**ANNOUNCMENT(S):**

**1. ****Beta Note (B/N): Hey there! BeyondChaos here :D I shall be beta-ing this story from now on :) I normally am not very fond of OC-centric stories, but I shall make an exception for this on****e**** :D**

**A/N:** D'awww I feel speshul:3

**2. I'd like to give a shout out to my good friend, Alistair^^ He helped me with the whole... "and there's only two pounds on my head..." scene x3 No clue of the currency over there, so thank you so much! *huggles***

**2. ****HELP!**** I need to watch/read some good anime/manga! I'm going to this anime club at my school, but I'm like, the most ignorant person there TT^TT I don't really know many good anime. I know Death Note, Blue Exorcist, Vampire Knight, Wolf's Rain, Naruto (eh), and I have some that I ****_want _****to get into, but I'd like to expand a lot more:) No Bleach, though xD Uh, so yeah! Please leave a review with your suggestion and the synopsis of the anime/manga. ****NO SPOILERS.**** I do that enough to myself xD For once I'd like to watch/read and anime/manga without spoiling it for myself x3 So yeah! Leave your suggestion and why you like it:) I seem to like supernatural types. Friend pointed that out xD No Sailor Moon shit:P Length doesn't matter, so long as I can get into it:) Thank you so much! ****c****:**

* * *

><p><strong>WARNING: <strong>Use of alcohol. Anyone who does not approve of this (like me, but I'm not sensitive:P) should beware. They're of age anyways so, what the hay? There! You have been warned *muahaha face* Also, language in this chapter is a lot more vulgar x3

* * *

><p><strong>-ChApTeR tHrEe-<strong>

**mErRy ChRiStMaS**

* * *

><p>This time, it took me four tries to get the door open (My poor shoulder; pretty sure I bruised it). Tatum was no help, either; she stood beside me like she was cheering on a football team. I turned and glared at her.<p>

"I'm not on Manchester United! Now, d'you mind help-" But as I spoke these words, the door decided to fall open like a frail little child. I stumbled into the table in front of the door, nearly knocking over the lamp. I threw my arms out and barely caught it in time.

"Lindsey!" Tatum cried as she left the door open behind her, entering the apartment with her hands cupped over her mouth. "Mum bought that for me for my birthday!"

"Yeah, and there's only two pounds on _my_ head..." I mumbled and walked back out into the hallway, gathering up as many shopping bags as I could. As I stepped into the apartment, Tatum picked up the last few, smaller bags I left for her. "So, what other torture awaits me for being born?" I placed my hands on my hips and looked curiously at Tatum, bags on the couch beside her. Tatum turned to me and loudly clapped her hands together.

"Clubbing! We'll have some dinner here and then leave in a couple hours," she smiled as I inwardly slapped myself for even asking. "Sound good?" She kept smiling at me. Honestly, if it were anyone else dragging me out and about, I would say no. But Tatum... she just looked so innocent that it was hard to deny her the simplest and most trivial of things. I sighed.

"_Peachy_," I moaned and turned around to my laptop. Mt shouldres drooped, arms hanging between my legs. Beneath the desk the notebook sat on was my messenger bag, Death Note inside and still hidden. I itched to open it up and read the rules again, to... to take up a pencil and to...

"Lindsey~ Look here, love," Tatum called. I turned around. She had moved to the kitchen while I was in my daze. It felt as though I had just woken up from a very deep slumber, a nagging voice in my head pressuring me to ditch Tatum for the rest of the evening and... And use the-

"Lindsey!" She poked her head from around the corner and I snapped my head up.

"Yes?"

"Get your ass in the kitchen!" She had a stern look about her that didn't match who she was at all. I actually laughed and, stepping in her direction, looked over my shoulder. But suddenly, a smell wafted its way into my nose and settled into my frontal lobe, completely weakening my impulse control. I immediately looked around the corner eagerly, standing beside Tatum. She looked at me with a twisted smirk, proud as proud could be.

I looked at the top of the stove and saw... heaven itself personified in a delicious looking strawberry cake (three tiers, mind you). It was coated in a rosy frosting, ringed with spiraling white liner, strawberries dotting it in symmetrical places. My mouth watered at the sight, stomach rumbling like I hadn't eaten in weeks.

"Like it?" She said smugly.

"Wha- how- when- _Tatum!"_ I couldn't finish a single coherent sentence, wanting nothing more than to stuff my face with the cake right then and there. I held my hands up, hovering around it slightly, poised to attack.

"Remember the guy I told you I've been talking to?" I nodded numbly, taking in a different angle of the cake. "Yeah? Well, he owns a _bakery! _He graduated from culinary school a couple years ago and he's been saving up money and all. He's such an amazing cook, Lindsey! You would not-"

but what I "would not" I had no clue, nor did I care. Yes, this cook Tatum was seeing might qualify as a Hindu god of the Asians', but all I was _really _interested in was his _cakes. _I slid my finger across the glistening icing and sucked delicately on my finger, sure to not hurt it, aside from being eaten.

"Oi! Oi! Get a fork and a plate, Lindsey! You're not an animal, eh. I know it's real good and all, but-"

"How do you know? Have you eaten some before? Did you go to his bakery? Why didn't you tell me, Tatum? _Why?" _I turned and faced Tatum with a hurt look in my eyes. "I feel betrayed, Tater Tot. I thought... I thought we were _sisters..."_ I let my shoulders drop, working up the water works.

"Well... um... I don't... he... it... we're _not _sisters- not _technically-" _She obviously didn't know how to defend herself other than with a given truth. I smirked.

"'Technically' can kiss my ass, Tatum! You're supposed to tell me these things, yeah," and cue the (fake) tears, "next time you get a boyfriend who can cook like that, you _have _to tell me,"

"Well, he's not a boyfriend, per se..."

We sat around the apartment for an hour, enjoying ourselves. It was nice to let loose like that and not have to worry about homework or tests. We talked about guys, about people, about clothes, about anything and everything that crossed our minds. I smiled like I hadn't in weeks. I laughed to the point where I thought my abdomen would spontaneously combust. However, a quarter after nine, Tatum called it quits and picked up our plates, setting them in the kitchen with the plethora of other dirty dishes. It was then time to prepare ourselves for the second outing of the day, which I didn't dread as much I normally would have. I was actually smiling, so... why not kick back and have fun?

I kept the thought of being another year older from my mind, however.

I put on the new dress she bought me, a white, post-modern one with a turtle neck and an oval cut-out showing off the line of my cleavage, hugging my hips and barely falling past mid-thigh. Tatum threw the new black ballet flats she had bought me in my face while she hoped about the room, putting on her own black sandals. Her outfit consisted of a nice black halter jacket with sleeves meant to be rolled up to her elbows, however they had fallen to her wrists; her shirt beneath that was a pink tank top, dotted with embroidered and sparkling skulls, a jean miniskirt for her bottoms.

"Lindsey, d'you think this makes me look fat?" Tatum turned around, scrutinizing herself in the mirror. I scoffed. Worst. Question. Ever.

"Tatum, you're a stick as it is! Besides, that dress makes your legs look sexy," I smiled and helped her fit her jacket on right, rolling up the fallen sleeves to the crease of her elbow.

"Oh~" Tatum cried out as she faced me, "you should tie your hair up in a bun! You're like a naughty secretary!" She giggled and I flushed, not exactly wanting _that _persona following me all night long. I decided to play along with it, though.

"How about now?" I turned around, now bearing black glasses. "Your nine forty-five appointment is here, Tatum," I said in a husky voice, tipping my glasses down. She laughed hysterically at my perfect impression and took up the glasses, examining them.

"I haven't seen you wear these in years. And you _definitely _didn't look as sexy the last time you had them on!"

"Oi!" I gaped hurtfully. "You always said they made me look more mature... in a sexy way..." I moaned disdainfully, taking the glasses from her and setting them down on the dresser.

"Yeah, well, you were seventeen. What was I supposed to say to my best friend? 'You look like a nerdy hooker'?"

"Well, _thanks. _Nice to know you had my back."

"They were bigger on you back then anyway!" She motioned for me to follow her into the bathroom. "Make-up time!"

"Glad I switched to contacts..."

I stayed mostly natural for the make-up portion of our dress-up time; foundation, face powder, and a smidgen of blush was enough for me. Tatum, on the other hand, preferred extravagance. She called her face a "blank canvas awaiting beautification." I didn't entirely agree with her philosophy, but hey, it's Tatum. Yeah. I was such a wimp...

At the corner of her left eye, she drew thin black spirals like lace, outlining them in a faint green, easily seen against her pale skin. She penciled in a quarter-sized rose, coloring it pink in the center, while the edges were red. Having "painted" her face for so long, this was all done well within fifteen minutes (me, on the other hand, I took five minutes tops). And as soon as the red fifty-nine on the digital clock blinked a double-zero, signaling a new hour, Tatum shrieked.

"It's ten o'clock, Lindsey! Hurry!"

I stood awkwardly in the doorway, completely ready.

She grabbed me by the arm and stormed for the front door.

"Oi! Oi! Tatum, wait! My necklace!" I threw my arm out and caught the necklace by the pendent from the computer desk and held onto it tightly as Tatum flew at the door in a hurdle. She tore at the doorknob and took a large step forward- face planting into the flaky green devil.

"OOOOWWWW!" She cried, letting go of me and holding her face. I stepped past her and opened the door with ease, laughing as she followed me out, steering clear of having anything to do with it.

"Thanks for caring about my face!" She wailed as the elevator descended. I laughed again, raising my hands behind my tilted head, putting on the necklace. There wasn't a picture inside it yet, but the sentimental value was very high. "You need to talk to the landlord about getting that thing replaced... I swear it's sentient!" She raged at the roof of the lobby.

"You know, I like the door. It has a personality. Not many doors have that."

"Yeah! The personality of Beyond Birthday!"

"You shouldn't joke about that, Tatum... that was only a couple of months ago. The families are still hurting," I chastised quietly. Tatum pouted, but said no more.

I hailed a Taxi as we exited our apartment building.

When we arrived at Tatum's place of employment –a club called, roughly translated, _Catcha' Babe_- I groaned at the sight of the line. There was at least forty people waiting, lining down the broken sidewalk (for such a nice looking club, it was resting in a shady looking place). Tatum, however, threw common sense and reality in my face when she rushed to the front of the line, flashing her work ID to the usher, who let us in with a stoic expression.

"G-good evening," I smiled weakly. The usher watched me intently. "Heh, bye now..." I squeaked and took off for Tatum, latching on to her arm as soon as I found her, working her way onto the dance floor.

"In-interesting people you-"

"WHAT?" Oh, of course. The music was too loud; I could hardly even hear myself think.

"INTERESTING PEOPLE YOU WOR-" Tatum shook her head.

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU. LET'S JUST DANCE!" And so we did.

It was a good hour and a half before Tatum budged from the dance floor. The music blew a total of half my brains out when we walked for the bar. I rubbed my forehead as we sat down, Tatum wearing the smile of a clown.

"What d'you want?" She asked, our voices now audible, being a good distance from the loud music- an absolute understatement.

"Whatever you want," I shook my head and looked around, keeping an eye out for any perverts.

Tatum called at the bartender, who smiled happily at her. They conversed for a moment before the man came back holding four glasses, citing them on the house. Tatum gave me one, taking one herself, apparently saving the other two for later. By the end of our third round, I was definitely light-headed, Tatum a mess of giggles. I must have kicked literally a dozen guys off of her, growling at each one like a guard dog.

"Hehehe- yur like a dooooog," she giggled and poked me. I glowered.

"Whatever..."

"Hey! Hey! Linds-Lindsey! D'ya' wanna'- dance, love?" Her eyes seemed to roll as she tripped off the bar stool. I was barely able to hold both of us up as I shook my head.

"Ta-tater Tot, How 'bout we go home?" She slapped my chest and yanked herself free, stooped over as she giggled again. She was looking up at me through half-lidded eyes, an ugly-looking sight indeed.

"No, silly! We've only been here for not even _two hours! _Let's have some fun! Loos'n up, Lindsey!" Remember when I said it was hard to deny Tatum anything because of her innocence? Yeah, well being inebriated didn't help my better judgment, _at all._

"Why not? 'S'my birthday!" I held up my glass and turned a circle, catching the eyes of several guys (I rhymed. LOL). A few of them whooped. "Twenty-two, baby! _Yeah!_" I laughed with Tatum and followed her to the dance floor, eyes rolling just as bad as hers.

"Wait!" She slurred, spinning around and stomping back to the bar.

"What- is it?" I slurred right back.

"We forgot something," she spit in my face as she said this. I didn't really notice.

"Wut?"

"Oi! Joooooey! Yoohoo, baby! 'Nother round for the birthday gurl and her friend!" Apparently this Joey was only too happy to oblige. Instead of one, he gave two. And after that, two guys offered us each two themselves. By the end of it all, it was only _too easy _to say that we were obliterated.

I must say, after we ditched those guys, the night became a pleasant blur. I was riding a wave of excitement, something I liked to call bliss. It was a warm and fuzzy place. We grinded against so many bodies that I think I actually got something close to carpet burn on my stomach. Tatum was all over anyone who could hold her up, she was so wasted. All in all, it was awesome.

And I didn't give a rat's ass about being twenty-two.

~***X***~

_She's melting_  
><em>She's melting<em>  
><em>Oh! Oh! Oh!<em>  
><em>She licked me like I'm ice cream<em>

_Dipping with my dipper_  
><em>We be drinking up the liqour<em>  
><em>Party like her birthday<em>  
><em>Shake it like an earthquake<em>

_Melting like an ice cream cone_  
><em>Going for her danger zone<em>  
><em>Go and suck my lollipop<em>  
><em>Sugar sweet cherry topped<em>

_Ferr sure fit_  
><em>To legit<em>  
><em>Hot spot<em>  
><em>Twirk it bitch<em>

_Strip it down_  
><em>Work it up<em>  
><em>Baby let me<em>  
><em>Fill your cups<em>

_Oh to the em, to the em, to the gee_  
><em>Sticky, messy<em>  
><em>Taste my treat<em>  
><em>But I love it when you<em>

_Scream for my ice cream_  
><em>Tell me all your dirty dreams<em>  
><em>Scream for my ice cream<em>  
><em>Well show me what's your fantasies<em>

_Scream for my ice cream_  
><em>Tell me all your dirty dreams<em>  
><em>Scream for my ice cream<em>  
><em>Well show me what's your fantasies<em>

_Lets get this party started!_  
><em>Drink till we get retarded!<em>

_GO! GO! GO! GO!_

_She licked me like I'm ice cream_

_She's melting_  
><em>Ha! Ha! Ha!<em>  
><em>What the fuck<em>  
><em>You know that we do it rough<em>  
><em>Move your feet to the beat<em>

_With this shit this songs complete_  
><em>Move that body super sweet<em>  
><em>Always like an ice cream treat<em>

_Gotta monster in my pants_  
><em>And if you ever get the chance<em>  
><em>Gonna cram it down your throat<em>  
><em>Watch you gasp for air &amp; choke<em>

_I'm gonna jizz all in your face_  
><em>I'm gonna wreck this fucking place<em>  
><em>Pull my hair smash the chair<em>  
><em>Break the bed &amp; give me head<em>

_Scream for my ice cream_  
><em>Tell me all your dirty dreams<em>  
><em>Scream for my ice cream<em>  
><em>Well show me what's your fantasies<em>

_Scream for my ice cream_  
><em>Tell me all your dirty dreams<em>  
><em>Scream for my ice cream<em>  
><em>Well show me what's your fantasies<em>

_Lets get this party started_  
><em>Drink till we get retarded<em>

_GO! GO! GO! GO!_

_She licked me like ice cream_

_You can taste my ice cream_  
><em>We can be a sweet team (x7)<em>

_Scream for my ice cream_  
><em>Tell me all your dirty dreams<em>  
><em>Scream for my ice cream<em>  
><em>Well show me all your fantasies<em>

_Scream for my ice cream_  
><em>Tell me all your dirty dreams<em>  
><em>Scream for my ice cream<em>  
><em>Well show me what's your fantasies<em>

_Lets get this party started_  
><em>Drink till we get retarded<em>

_GO! GO! GO! GO!_

_She licked me like ice cream_

_She's melting_

_Ha ha ha!_

~***X***~

"Tatum! Tatum! Tatum! It's almost four! Can we gooo yet?" I proded her as she splashed her face with water. We wound our way into the bathroom after Tatum puked all over a guy who was hitting on her. Pretty sure we weren't going to see him again.

"I- guess..." she moaned and looked at her reflection, "just make sure I don' puke on anymore cute guys, m'kay?" She fell into my arms, causing me to stumble into the wall.

"Tater Tot, I can' hold ya'! You- yur too heavy!" I shoved her against the wall, using my shoulder to keep her standing. Her head lolled to the side as I pulled out the cell phone from her purse, calling a cab.

The cabbie was a nice guy. He asked if Tatum was okay and I said 'why not,' though I'm pretty sure it came out as 'why'n't,' because he just laughed and drove off for our apartment. Once I paid the man I practically dragged Tatum to the entrance of the building. I let her lie on the floor as I bought a bottle of water (okay, so it took me several attempts, but I got it... eventually...) from the machine to the left of ourselves on the inside, a much nicer sight than what the outside held.

I poured the entire bottle over Tatum's head, sure that I couldn't carry her to the room. Pink and black paint stained and smeared its way down her cheek. Some drips of it reached her neck, purple and black creating an ugly lovechild.

"The fu', Lindsey?" She swore at me several more times as we stumbled over to the elevator. "Which- which floor was'it?" We stared at the numbers, unsure of how to proceed.

"I dun' know..." I mumbled, my finger playing at my lips as I thought hard on it.

"Oi, there's no thirteen!" Tatum cried out.

"Well, duuuuh, Tater Tot," I shook my head at her, "it's superstitious bull crap, y'know? And wait-" I looked at the number pad again-"the- zu highest number is nine!" I bellowed and fell against the back wall.

"Ah! Lindsey! Iz'at guy! That peeerv!" I looked and saw that a round man was entering the lobby, glaring at us. "Oh, shit, Lindsey! Hit the number! What's the button? Where'z it at?" she looked panicked at the numbers. I jumped up and stared with her.

"What'z'a number, Tater Tot?" I asked stupidly.

"Um... um... oh! I think a'member!" She hit one of the buttons that blurred into a couple others, the doors shutting. "Oh snap! He's running!" And sure enough, there was the jolly round man, sprinting across the lobby.

"Hehehe- he looks like Santa- HI, SANTA! I WAN'S'A DOGGIE FER-" but before I could have my wish fully heard, the doors slammed shut. Not before I saw him turn to our right- directly for the stairs, though. _Nooooooo; _the perverted fat man just _had _to stalk me to my apartment. _Of course._ How else could being Lindsey go?

"DOES 'E KNOW WUR WE LIIIVE?" I shrieked at Tatum.

"I... I think'a might've mentioned it- in passing... I was _drunk, _Lindsey! Worse than _now!" _I gaped at her. She totally sold us out.

"What do we _do_?" I cried. "'E'z guna' kill us and's all yur fault!" I grabbed my face and practically tore it off.

I was scared. I was scared; I was so, so scared!

"I'm so sorry, Lindsey! Can ya' forgive me?" Tears fell from her eyes, causing some to pour from my own.

"'Course'a can! It's Santa's fault anywayz!" I hugged the tearful girl just as the bell dinged and we stepped onto our floor. I heard muffled noises from our right.

"Waz'at?" Tatum pulled herself from me and walked over to the large metal door. "It sounds like..."

"SANTA!" I shouted. "RUUUUN!" We bolted down the hallway for our room. You know, maybe if I hadn't yelled, he wouldn't have heard me. Ergo, he might have had the possibility of _forget__ing_where we lived. Yeah. Such a smart little girl.

"Wait, which'n iz'it?" Tatum was breathless as she snatched at my shoulder, pulling me to a stop. She panted beside me as I frantically turned circles.

"Um.. uh.. duh.. zu..." Tears were falling endlessly now as I thought of being murdered by Santa Claus and fed to his reindeer. "AND THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW ANY BETTER!" I sobbed.

"I think! Um.. twenty-three B! Twenty-three- Wus wrong?" She patted my shoulder.

"I don't wanna' be ea'd'n' by Santa's reindeer!"

"Dun' worry! I know where we live! It's okay!" She led me down the hallway past three more doors until we reached our own. "Here!" She pulled out a key and turned the lock, but then stopped.

"Oh! I can' open the door, 'member?" I nodded and moved to turn the knob. "You have to hit it, re-member?"

"THIS IS LIKE A CRAPPY VIDEOGAME!" I rammed my shoulder into the door and turned the knob, only to face plant just like Tatum did when we left. "_Fuck__!" _I held my face and took a couple steps back.

"Yur bleeding!" Tatum gasped.

"Ya' think!" I tilted my head back, clutching the tip of my nose.

"The door, Lindsey!"

"My nose, Tatum! I think it broke!" Even more tears as I frantically tried to stop the bleeding. The pain was sharp and very distracting. I completely forgot about Santa at that-

"SANTA!" Tatum shouted in my ear. I looked over and saw him heave the door open at the end of the hallway. I let out a mighty cry and began pounding into the door, using all I had to get it open.

"My shoulder!"

"Lindsey, hurry!"

"My _nose!"_

"Open the door! Open the door!"

"It won't open! It won't open! What do we do? Help me, Tatum!"

"Gah!" Tatum jumped beside me, both of us attacking the door.

"IT'S A WOODEN PORTAL FROM HEEEEEELL!"

"Woah!" We fell inside the apartment. As we both looked up from the heap of ourselves on the floor, we saw Santa.

"You're not jolly like they say you are! You're all greasy and smelly!" I wept.

"Please don't feed me to your reindeer!"

"Gotcha'!" He said triumphantly.

"NOOOOO!"

"Yes! Think you can get away from _me? _Huh? You do this kinda thing all the time you little brats?" He fumed.

"Please don't hurt us!" Tatum begged, clinging to me. I held her tightly, just as frightened.

"Go away, mister Santa Claus!"

"What the hell are you drunk idiots talking about? _I want the rest of the fair you owe me!"_

We deadpanned.

"Wut?" I spoke up as Tatum sniffled beside me.

"The fair! You're five yen short!"

Oh.

"I didn't... we thought... _I'm sorry," _I bawled liked a little kid. I couldn't believe I'd been so scared over something so completely _stupid._ I threw him the money and he left, still fuming.

Tatum cried for sleep and I was only too happy to agree. She stripped herself of all her clothing and fell on the sheets, stark naked. I on the other hand, even in the plastered state I was in, put on a tank top with fresh underwear before covering myself with the blanket. I slept like a rock, not even needing to use my sleeping pills.

~***X***~

Not taking my sleeping pills before going to sleep was one of the stupidest decisions I had made that night.

Flashes of blood and cages... glares of light... cold stares... a fleeting heart beat... breath barely tangible...

Pain... terrible... terrible pain... screaming and crying... it hurt so bad... _no... no, stop..._

And a wretched smell. It encased my face like a coffin, burning my nose and smashing it in my face. I cringed, feeling tears at my eyes. It was the bodies. I knew it was the smell of the bodies- oh, the rotting bodies. God, I didn't want to be there anymore. I didn't want to see the bloody flashes; I didn't want to hear the piercing cries; I didn't want to smell the blood and the rot. Dear God, I just wanted out of there. I just wanted away. I wanted to be free. _Oh please, somebody help me! _I screamed at the top of my my lunges for the stench to be relieved.

**_SOMEBODY HELP ME!_ **

"Hey! Wake up!"

A stray strand of hair stabbed me in the eye as I jolted awake from my nightmare with an audible gasp. My eyes opened and I was blearily recalling the horror I had just escaped from. No. No, I wanted to forget... I needed to forget... The deepest, darkest crevices of my mind were places I did not want to go... did not want to revisit... I took in a shaky breath and decided to look around me and draw my attention elsewhere.

Nothing around me was real in this first moment. I saw, but could not bear witness. I looked up and thought I saw the grudge standing above me. I blinked once, expecting it to go away.

So help me Father, it did not.

And for the life of me, _I could not stop screaming._

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><p><strong>mErRy ChRiStMaS<strong>

**-EnD cHaPtEr ThReE-**

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><p><strong>AN: **Um... so Santa totally sucked, but everything else was good, right? Right? (crickets) Yeah, I love you too, guys TT^TT teehee Lindsey loses IQ points when she's drunk and Tatum seems to gain them xD

Also, I would like to give a special thanks to my good friend Ava for agreeing to beta this story from now on for me^^ She's a wonderful authoress with amazing talents in the department of yaoi (purrs) But that's besides the point! Um! Uh! She's BeyondChaos, obviously:D Check her out. I also beta a story for her, so she's basically completing the circle of life^^

You should respect that and read her stories.

Like the Story of L;

And the Wammy's House Boys (which I beta);

And all of her tear-jerking, heart-wrenching one-shots that will blow you away:)

hehe... advertising xD

Review! (cos like... two people have *sniffle* yet over fifty people have read it. WHERE IS THE MATH, PEOPLE? ;P)

Plus, spellchecking for drunks is hard -_- I deserve some compensation for that D:

**B/N: Yeah...so...review :D. I got nothin' else to say...**

**A/N: **Thanks for having my back TT^TT

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><p><strong>DISCLAIMER:<strong>Yeah... kept forgetting this,.. um... I don't own Death Note! And neither does BeyondChaos! I make no profit from the publication of Apples.

I know that including that song in this chapter was completely inappropriate and totally uncalled for. I'm sorry xD I just couldn't resist! I was listening to it and Lindsey and Tatum were at a bar and it was just so perfect! Anyway:3 The song is called _Scream for My Ice Cream _and it's written and performed by Blood on the Dance Floor. Great song. Me no own. Go check it out x3

**CLAIMER: **Lindsey, Tatum, Joey, the Cabbie, a.k.a. 'Santa,' and any other OCs (man, there's a lot TT^TT) are all mine:D So yeah. I sue, you know, so review and be in my favor ;)

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><p><strong>ANON REVIEWS:<strong>

_Snoessie- _Thanks for your review! I shall not sue you^^ Uh, I'm just typing as I can write now. I am just so lazy, but I try to write on _Apples _as often as I can remember. I know exactly where this story is going and whatnot, it's just me getting past the parts that I consider boring and onto the exciting ones:D I don't have chapter four written out, but I do have a bit of an outline. And an outline for chapter five, too. Anyway, I'll try to push as fast as I can! Thanks again for reviewing:) Give chapter five a week at most from when this chapter was posted x3 Maybe even this weekend if I work on it:)


	4. Do They Even Have Gold Fish in Japan?

**WARNING: **Cussing... again xD You know what, I think this story is screwed in the language department. Lindsey and Tatum are officially potty mouths. Deal with it o: There, now I don't have to waste my finger energy on this stupid and unnecessary warning anymore x3

_You have been warned _0.0

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><p><strong>-ChApTeR fOuR-<strong>

**dO tHeY eVeN hAvE gOlD fIsH iN jApAn?**

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><p>I was, for lack of a better word, <em>scared shitless.<em>

I barely understood how scared I was myself. The grudge- standing... standing right in my face- right smack in my face. Telling me to wake up. But... but... _the grudge! _And then it felt like I was asphyxiating; I inhaled deeply, choking on oxygen, gagging for air and something to assuage my throat. It felt raw, like sand paper had skinned a layer from it. I gaped up at the- the_ thing_. My mouth was open; what sounded like bubbles popping escaped from within, my eyes bulging. _Damn, _was I terrified.

"Are you finished blowing my ear drums out yet, girl?" It spoke to me. It turned its head. It looked almost sardonic_._ My stomach dropped and I felt sickly. And after a few more silent, ticking seconds: "Giiiiirl? Hellooooo? Anybody ho-"

"_Shinigami!" _I shouted, bringing up my hand to point a finger at it. I was shaking incredibly, like it was below freezing in the apartment. Actually had I been more focused on that aspect, I would have found it quite stuffy in there. Tatum was fantastic at turning the heater up as far as it would go and leaving it on for more than twelve hours at a time. I never did entirely understand that girl.

"Mmm. Nice observation," it smiled, "very proud of you, girl." It was _mocking _me. It was mocking _me?_ The thing with a hunched over back, grotesque arms with knuckles that brushed against the floor, body knotted and rotted looking- _that _was what was laughing at _me?_ I scoffed.

"Wh-what the _fu-"_

"Uh-bu, bu-bu, bu!" It held a finger in my face, wrapped in dirty and wrinkled wrappings. I stopped, stuttered, and stared. "Thank you," I swear I could hear its cheeks clicking with saliva as it smiled and cocked its head. After a mild stretch of silence I couldn't contain the nagging, burning, teasing itching anymore.

"Wh-what? Y-you demand my silence a-and then you just-"

"_Uh-bu, bu-bu, buuuu_!" I scowled. The thing was playing games with me now.

"What's your n-name?" I still couldn't get rid of that annoying stutter. So what if I was nervous? Did that mean I had to show it? Its lips gave off an audible crack as it opened its mouth.

"MaeDae," it smiled -well, its expression was something so twisted and grotesque that only one scared out of their mind and pathetically desperate would call it a smile.

"O-okay..." I took a deep, calming breath. Knowing the identity of the thing somehow made it better. I closed my eyes, still keeping my shaky grip on the sheets at my side. "Wh-why are you-" I snapped my mouth shut and practically swallowed my tongue as I tried to recycle saliva, speaking in a strained voice- "_why are you here_?" I kept my eyes shut, not wanting eye contact with... it. I couldn't bring myself to allow such a horror a name.

"You have my Death Note, girl. You _have _looked through it, haven't you?" The snap of my teeth was audible as I shut my mouth, bewildered by the ease of which it talked down to me. This whole scenario... it just couldn't be real. There could _not _be a shinigami standing beside my bed, being _sarcastic, _asking if I had read its _Death Note _or not. Things like this didn't happen in real life. It had to be a dream... _the dream. _No. No, I had to forget. It felt like someone had a fist clenched tightly around my throat.

"Y-yeah. I re-ad all of them," I swallowed the blunt flame in my throat, bobbing my head along with the reflex, "but that doesn't mean I don't have questions."

"What fun would there be without them?" It smirked. "Go on," it prompted.

"A-alright..." I closed my eyes again, forcing myself to take control of my body and seize the opportunity to have my questions answered. And yes. Yes, I remembered. "Wh-where did you come from?" It laughed.

"You're not very particular, are you?" It nodded its head, smiling in approbation. "I come from a place called the Shinigami Realm. Likewise, you come from and live in a place called the Human Realm. You could call them the reverse of each other, I suppose." It shrugged, thinking over its own words. _Fuck, _this was so weird. How could a... a- _shinigami realm _exist? _Where _could such a thing exist?

"D-d... d-... _how?"_ It looked at me with such a blank expression I could have used it as paper and not known it was a... (grotesque) face.

"'H- how what?'" It looked at me, waiting for me to go on; maybe about how electricity works or emails are sent. Like the existence of a realm separate from the one Earth apparently resided in was common sense. Like it was as known as the Earth was round. Yeah. Yeah, that was the weirdest day of my life. It felt like I was just _discovering _that the Earth was round. I shook my head.

"_How can such a thing exist?" _It continued looking at me, its mouth slightly agape.

"Um... okay, this has to be some kind of mistake. Are you sure you're Lindsey Stevens, girl?" I nodded numbly. "Sure? Absolutely? Totally? _Really, _now_?"_

It was my turn to be skeptical.

"What are you talking about? Yeah, I'm Lindsey Stevens." I nodded my head stupidly. "Why wouldn't I be?

"_REALLY, now? _I swear, there's gotta' be a mistake!" It kind of laughed, I think.

"_Why?" _I stressed, growing irritated.

"Because the Lindsey Stevens I heard of was extremely intelligent and enrolled in To-Oh with top grades, ready to move on to the FBI! You're not acting like that person," if it would have stuck its tongue out at me, I would not have been surprised. Wait... how did it know all of that about me? I kept my silence, however, and continued playing the upset ignorant.

"Excuse me for being shocked at the prospect of another realm existing alongside _mine!" _I actually snapped at the thing. _Careful now, Lindsey. It might hurt you if you make it angr- _What the hell was I thinking. 'Hurt me?' Really? I slapped myself.

"It's not a prospect, girl! It's fact! Where else could something like me come from? Or that notebook you got?" I opened my mouth to reply, but no sound came out. It mocked me, awaiting a retort. I had none, so I just looked around the room, at a loss of what to do. And then, my eyes grazed over the bed. Where Tatum should have been. Bloody emphasis on _should have_.

"Wh-where's Tatum? What did you do to her?" I looked up at MaeDae, my eyes fretfully staring into her own red ones. I moved backwards a few centimeters, only to have my back met with the headboard. Oh. Fucking. Joy. I inwardly shuddered. The thing ate Tatum! It ate Tatum and it was going to eat me next! _Oh dear God!_

"She woke up a few minutes before you, mumbling about needing stuff for her head. I think... I don't know. She kept saying, 'fucking hung over,' and, 'damn Lindsey for dragging me out-'"

"_She said what, now?" _I shrilled. How dare she put the blame on- oh, I should have been glad she hadn't been eaten... I blushed. "Um... okay, thanks." I looked around the room again, still too afraid to make much more eye contact with... with... okay, saying 'it' was becoming redundant.

"Are you male or female?" I asked without thinking, looking at her arms. Anywhere but her face.

"Female," she said simply. And _that _made me feel even more comfortable. It wasn't some creeper, pedo-bear guy shinigami. Yeah, it was just a bitchy female one. It was almost funny.

Almost.

"So, anymore elementary questions?" It -... _she- _cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah, uh... what is Mu? The Death Note said that all humans go to Mu when they die. What is it?"

"Oh, you'll find out once I write-" her eyes opened wide as if she realized she had said too much.

…

Oh...

Oh, no...

"Wh-what? My name? Y-you're going to write _my_ name in the Death Note?" My eyes widened as I looked at the wall that the computer was beyond, knowing the Death Note was there- knowing that the thing that was apparently going to _kill _me was there and the person (did MaeDae count as a person?) who was going to commit that murder in the same apartment. It was like the part of a scary movie where the serial killer was right behind the next victim and they didn't even know.

"Well, the cat's out of the bag now, isn't it? Shit... well, yeah. That's the deal the first human who ever owned a Death Note made with their shinigami. I kinda' _have to_, you know?" I choked down my anxiety. And then another question popped into my head that I didn't want the answer to. A little sob lodged itself into my throat as I opened my mouth to ask MaeDae. How I mustered the courage to speak these next words was beyond me.

"Wh...when?" I whispered near the point in inaudibility. MaeDae smirked and leaned in close to my face. I smelled that same filthy stench I had in my dream. It was so hard not to cry. My emotions were near over-powering: the dream, the Death Note, the shinigami who owned it, and the date of my death. And I thought _yesterday _sucked. I would have gladly wound back time and stayed in November 28, 2003 for the rest of eternity.

Just as I had whispered, she said even lower: "...wait for the pain in your chest." The corners of her lips nearly met the lobes of her ears. She was smiling like a Cheshire cat. That smile that tried to hide a wicked intent, and failed miserably.

I let out a breath so deep I nearly turned two-dimensional as it was all released. I was so happy, so relieved not to have to know the date of my death. She looked above my head. And then, something clicked inside my brain. I didn't know what it was, but I knew why she was looking above my head. At least, I _thought _I knew. It was entirely plausible. So, I jumped up and bolted for my door. Completely running through her. I stopped and turned around, stuttering. She shrugged.

"Wow..." I shook my head and proceeded for my messenger bag, Death Note inside. I knelt in front of my computer desk, resting my forehead against the edge, and began to flip through the rules of the notebook.

"What are you doing?" I jumped and turned, seeing MaeDae standing in front of the couch behind me. I took in a deep breath, shaking away the fear.

"I'm looking... Aha!" I exclaimed and read quickly over the rule a couple times, soaking in the information, deducing, connecting, and finally smiling and turning around. "You know when I'm going to die." I said simply. She cocked an eye brow.

"Um?"

"_You know when I'm going to die,_" I repeated. "You can see my lifespan, and name, above my head. This rule right here says, 'the human who becomes the owner of the Death Note can, in exchange of half his or her remaining life, get the eyeballs of the god of death which will enable him or her to see a human's name and remaining lifetime when looking through them.' How else could I gain the ability to see these things without it being possible before? I can't just gain something without it ever existing. Correct me if I'm wrong-" silence- "good. Then that means _you _can see my name and lifespan -located above my head, which is why you _looked _above my head a bit ago. That means you know when I'm going to die." She stared at me for a few seconds, eyes wide.

Taking in her appearance during this time, I was able to see she was practically naked. She wore dirty wrappings from below her breasts and down to the tips of her toes (her legs were bound together because of this), her arms also being wrapped to their fingertips, though her arms were not tied together. Her long and coarse looking black hair covered her breasts and went down to mid-thigh.

"Hm..." MaeDae seemed to be thinking for a moment. "I was wrong about you, girl." She nodded her head and looked around the apartment. I smiled to myself and hid the Death Note in my bag again. My stomach growled right then. I looked down at it in a pout. From the corner of my eye I saw MaeDae cock an eye brow.

"I am hungry..." I mumbled quietly, standing up. I turned around and saw MaeDae stiffen. I looked at her suspiciously, but didn't say anything. I slowly walked toward the kitchen, keeping an eye on her the entire time. And when I rounded both corners to the kitchen, I gaped. Gold Fish crumbs. Gold Fish crumbs coated the floor of the kitchen entirely, the sack ripped open and lying abandoned on the counter, crumbs coating that as well. "MaeDae? What... what the _hell?" What the fuck was MaeDae thinking? _I gritted my teeth, looking at the mess. Well, my kitchen was already a wreck, but that didn't mean anything! MaeDae, a random _stranger -a fucking shinigami- _had tore open my bag of Gold Fish and ate it, leaving millions of crumbs all over everywhere. A random stranger. And a god of death, no less. The hell was my life coming to?

"I... I was hoping you might not notice..." she spoke meekly. I spun around to make startling eye contact. My heart stuttered.

"_How could I not notice such a mess?"_

"It was already so dirty!" Wow, MaeDae was an idiot.

"Whatever! Why did you rip it open, anyways?" I turned back around and stepped carelessly into the kitchen. It was already so messy, what could creating a few more crumbs do? Oh, but such a bad mistake made I. "OW!" I had stepped on a very sharp crumb. I leaned against the counter, holding my foot within my hand, chanting all sorts of curses to will away the pain. MaeDae snickered at me.

"Stupid girl," she chuckled.

"Like you have room to talk! You can't even open a bloody sack of Gold Fish!" She held up her hands in irritation.

"_You _try opening that thing with no available fingers!"

"_You _take them off you insufferable git!" I sat my foot down on the ground, glaring at nothing as I walked precariously for the pantry and the broom and dustpan within.

"And then what? Go around naked? Do you really wanna' know what I look like underneath-"

"Okay! Conversation over! I flee!" I waved my hands and the broom around, then set the bristles on the floor, sweeping up the kitchen. She laughed mockingly.

"That's what I thought..."

"Oh, sod off!" I ground under my breath, pushing everything to the middle of the tile in one big pile. I was thankful for the silence that followed suit.

I sang a quiet song in my head (_Teacher, teacher, teacher; show me your chest! Ring the school bell, it's time for recess! Teacher, teacher, teacher; I've been a dirty whore! I want your nails on my back like nails on a chalkboard...) _and actually smiled on the outside. Partially because that song always made me laugh, but mostly because... yeah, okay. The song was the reason for the smile on my face.

When I finished cleaning up the mess in the kitchen (mind you, just the Gold Fish carcasses and nothing more), I went back into the living room to boot up my lap top.

"You sure do lead an interesting life, girl," MaeDae said as she watched me drum my fingers on the desk to the beat of the song I had been singing.

"It's a Saturday and I was partying last night, MaeDae. What do you expect me to do in the aftermath of such an event?"

"You don't have a hangover like the other girl?"

"No, I don't really get them. I mean, I feel like I want to vomit, but I can deal with that," I responded indifferently. I entered my password and waited a few more seconds.

"What were you dreaming about?" This question came about so fast I didn't even understand what she had said.

"What?" I sounded nervous. Bad. Bad Lindsey.

"What did you dream last night? You were whimpering in your sleep and then you started screaming. What were you dreaming about?" I looked down at the keyboard, thinking over the dream. I didn't really want to discuss it. I mean, I couldn't even explain it myself. I had no clue where it came from or what it meant. It was then that I realized my breathing had picked up. I closed my eyes and quickly calmed myself down, getting onto the Internet.

"Gi-"

"I don't want to talk about it." I cut her off, hoping the conversation would end there.

"Why not?"

"Because I just don't, alright? It doesn't matter. I won't have it again, I promise you that. I never dream if I take my pills, but I forgot last night, so..." I trailed off, remembering the flashes of blood and screaming. I caressed the bridge of my nose and sighed. "So, I had a bad dream..." I finished lamely. I shook my head and looked back up at the slowly loading screen. Stupid Internet connection. It was never reliable.

"You take pills?"

What, was the questionnaire for me to fill out, now?

"Hey, you're the thing from another world. You shouldn't be able to ask questions until all of mine have been answered," I snapped, drumming my fingers to my anger now.

"You stopped asking them."

"Whatever. Just stop asking all of these personal questions. Yeah, I take pills to get to sleep because I have a recurrent nightmare with no explanation behind it. Excuse me for being incorrigibly fucked up."

The Internet finally loaded.

"So, what's... this thing you're on?" She showed sympathy. She actually cared about upsetting me. _Stupid bitch... make me feel bad for being mean to her. _I sighed and looked over at her lazily.

"It's called the Internet. I don't know the specifics about because I don't really care, but it's so you can do all sorts of things like watch movies, play games, talk to people- you get the idea. You really don't know about the Internet?" I was actually intrigued by this prospect and so turned away from the object of her affections.

"No, I don't. I haven't been in the human realm for several hundred years and they _definitely _didn't have this back then." I gaped.

"Really? That's actually really cool. I like the past and.. history stuff." I smiled kindly, receiving a curious stare from MaeDae. She shook her head and continued staring in awe at the computer.

"And this... light box? What is it? How does it work?" She leaned forward, her face uncomfortably close to mine. I crinkled my nose at the close proximity and her smell.

"It's called a computer. It works with electricity. Millions of people have them all over the world. They're very popular, very every-day, and very coveted. I could honestly care less about it, though. I do need it, however, for things like Facebook. It's a social networking site that everyone has." My face flat-lined. "I find it annoying." She opened her mouth in awe.

"Really? What can you do on Facebook?" It was obvious this word was foreign to her with the way she shaped her lips around the word as it left her mouth. I sighed and turned to my computer, typing in the URL of said website. "What are you doing?" She asked eagerly.

"I'm showing you Facebook. I actually need to check it anyways. I haven't been on in a couple of weeks..." I brought my hand to the mouse and then the keyboard again, typing in my email address and password, MaeDae gawking the entire time. I decided to be happy she wasn't mocking me, so I started singing in my head again, subconsciously maneuvering the arrow. When the page completely loaded, I gasped. "_Wooooooaaaah now, Nelly! _Really? _Forty-six notifications and twelve messages?"_ I clicked on the notifications, and then seeing what they were, my heart fell. People posting on my wall, people liking other posts, and people wishing me a happy birthday. Oh yeah. Yesterday was my... _birthday_.

"Is that a lot?"

She had the curiosity of a small child being shown a shiny thing. It was almost cute.

Again, _almost._

"Not for something like this..." I clicked on the message box and decided to flip through them. At the very bottom was one from one Norma Bricker. Tatum's mom. I smiled, seeing the first few words, and then opened it.

_Dear Lindsey and Tatum (since the latter so disagrees with getting a Facebook of her own),_

_We wish you a happy birthday, Lindsey. I send this instead of calling, knowing Tatum will drag you away from the house the entire evening (love you Tater Tot). Your father and I have sent a check in the mail. We also decided you girls need more entertainment than a computer (with unreliable Internet, might I add, that you refuse to let us upgrade for you), so we bought you a TV and an accommodating entertainment center. Speakers, surround sound, and some (legal!) movies have been included. Please don't be upset with us. We're merely showing our love : - ) _

_Love you both,_

_Mum&Dad_

I couldn't decide whether to smile or scream. Those fools... they always went overboard on my birthday, taking advantage of the opportunity to buy me things I wouldn't accept on a normal day. I decided on a warm smile, typing my own reply of thanks and mock anger. I told them of how grateful I was and that Tatum sent her love as well.

"Who is 'mum and dad?'" MaeDae asked. My eyes snapped up. Why didn't she first assume that they were my, or Tatum's and mine, as well? Why didn't she make that logical assumption? I looked at her, careful not to show my suspicions.

"They're Tatum's parents. They're very nice people who live in England- they're also always conning me into calling them 'mum and dad.'" I gauged her reaction, which was just the simple nod of her head. I nodded my own in response, turning back to the computer, but then stopping when I heard a knock at the door. MaeDae looked back.

"I think that's your friend..."

"_Lindsey~! _Are you awake, love?"

"Yeah! I'm coming!" I stood and walked for the door. I didn't worry about Tatum seeing MaeDae. I knew only I could, unless she, or anyone else for that matter, were to touch the Death Note.

"Aye!" I heard her chirp back.

I opened the door smoothly, seeing Tatum with a box the size of my palm in one hand (this was the desired headache medication) and an envelope in the other. She smiled brightly at me, walking in as I held the door open for her.

"Get the check?"

"Yup~ And the landlord says there's a-"

"Package for us at the local post office. Yes, I know. Mrs. Bri-" Tatum glared at me, setting the little white box and envelope on the counter in the kitchen- "_mum and dad _sent me a message on Facebook telling me all 'bout it." I stuck my tongue out at her.

"How do they expect us to get it here anyway? We don't have a car and we're both -I mean _me!- _are weak!" She shook her head and went to the bedroom. I picked up the envelope, tearing it open with ease. Fearing what was inside, I closed my eyes and pulled it out. From behind me, I heard MaeDae speak up.

"Is that a lot? There certainly are several numbers..." I swallowed the saliva that had accumulated in my mouth and opened my eyes.

"_GAH! Tatum! _Jeez!"

"Blimey, what's wrong, Lindsey?" Tatum was beside me in a second, decked out in loose pajama bottoms and a simple sports bra. She held my arm as she looked over my shoulder. "_Bloody hell! _The woman over did it!"

"That's definitely something coming from _you," _I gasped.

725,332.50 yen.

"_She's absolutely mad!" _Tatum cried. "I don't know how much that is, but that looks like a _lot!" _We stood idle for a few seconds before I looked up at the computer, then over at Tatum who seemed to understand what I was getting at. We bolted across the small apartment quickly, me sitting down in front of it, and Tatum standing behind me. I quickly googled 'currency converter.'

"If she sent as much as I think she sent..."

"How much do you think she sent?" Tatum almost seemed to panic.

"I don't... a couple of grand, maybe?" I tried weakly. This didn't help the situation. Tatum let out a squeak and then willed the computer to hurry up. It did, and when I set the conversion chart straight, I fearfully held the arrow over the 'convert' button. Sweat beaded at my brow.

"_Do it..."_ Tatum whispered in my ear. I swallowed the lump in my throat, then hit the button.

~***X***~

Here's the thing: Tatum and I were very independent women. We liked to do things our way, work for our way, and pay for our way. We liked taking care of ourselves. This is why we never liked receiving things on our birthdays, or any day at all for that matter. It made us feel like moochers who didn't take care of themselves. It made us feel like we were using Tatum's parents to get things, especially because of all of the expensive things they would buy us and how much money they would give us. And we both loved her parents too much to feel that way.

And it wasn't like we didn't _enjoy _getting presents. Nobody in their right mind didn't! And I didn't mean to sound ungrateful. Still…I wanted to make my own way in the world, not have everything just handed to me.

I mean... I couldn't take advantage of them like that. They took me in when I had nowhere else to go. They cared for me when no one else would. How could I let them splurge on me? _I'm _the one that should have been buying _them _things. And always, _always, _I had told them I would. As soon as I got into the FBI, I would ensure that they had a place to be once they retired. It wasn't even the least I owed them. It was... entirely under compensating. A life for a place to be when they could provide such a thing for themselves? It wasn't fair.

Understandably, I was terrified of the answer to our question: how much deeper did they dig the hole this time?

The number we saw, _did not do a bloody good thing for our fragile minds at all._

~***X***~

"_What the bloody fucking hell!" _Tatum screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Holy _shit!"_ I couldn't control myself either.

Six... six... she gave us _six thousand pounds.*_

Try fitting _that _into your wallet, no matter _what _country you're from.

"I... I need fresh air, Tatum. I need some fresh bloody air," I said breathlessly.

"You two are idiots!" MaeDae cried from her corner, laughing at us. I threw daggers at her with my eyes as I stood from my computer.

"Tatum, I'm going to go to the gym. I need to anyways. It's Saturday." I felt numb. I felt totally numb.

"Okay." Tatum nodded her head, eyes frozen wide as she stared, gaping at the computer. "I'm gonna' watch porn."

"Alright." I went into the bedroom, changed my clothes, and grabbed my gym bag. "Meet me at the post office in an hour."

"Okay."

"Alright."

"See ya'."

"Okay."

"Alright."

I left, walking like a newly awakened zombie. MaeDae was laughing at me the entire time as she followed me down the hallway and into the elevator.

"I was right to give you the notebook!" She held her torso as she continued laughing. I just stood there, staring at nothing. I couldn't think about anything but how I was supposed to pay the Brickers off. Damn, they didn't play fair. But somehow... I seemed to love them even more. They would give anything to make Tatum and I happy.

I smiled.

MaeDae straightened herself, as if she caught herself from falling... or screwing up again.

I did not notice.

"Oh, glorious Sweat Machines... here I come..." I exited the apartment building and hailed a taxi, stepping inside.

"Hey, it's you!" The cabbie shouted, glaring at me from the rear view mirror. Me? "Think you're gonna' remember to pay me the whole fare this time?" He spat at my reflection. Wow.

If only he knew.

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><p><strong>dO tHeY eVeN hAvE gOlD fIsH iN jApAn?<strong>

**-EnD cHaPtEr FoUr-**

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><p>*6,000 British pounds is roughly 10,000 American dollars (If you want to be anal [and who doesn't? xD], it's less:P)<strong><br>**

**A/N:** Yay! A cameo from Santa:D I don't think she remembers him, though... Oh well:) Guess what Ava did in this chapter? Guess:) She referenced Mello x3 Ahhhhh, I so caught that:)

Also, Lindsey and MaeDae are referring to the dream Lindsey had in the last chapter.

Those who have read the original first three chapters of _Apples, _but haven't, at the very least, skimmed over the reuploaded ones won't know about her nightmare.

I went ahead and added that in for reasons:)

I _also _changed the setting of when, where, and how Lindsey stumbles upon the Death Note in the first chapter. 

**Check that out if you'd like** (not necessary, though).

A new minor character was introduced xD He doesn't really matter, though:P (psst! Matto! Don't say anything about him in the reviews so as to not spoil anything 0.0)

You know, I found it so damn cool how MaeDae said, "wait for the pain in your chest." Did anyone else find that cool? I found it fucking amaysing and totally badass:3 But... wait... is that conceded since _I'm _the one who wrote it? o-0 I'll shut up, now...

**Beta Note: Okay, I had a lot of fun doing this! You folks best leave a review, or I will hunt you down and gut you!…okay, not really. But please take the time to review.**

**Love,**

**-BeyondChaos**

:D Merci ^o^**  
><strong>

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><p>Another awesome thanks to Ava for being my beta:3 She roughed me up on some of the stuff that was in the original chapter and set me straight:) <strong>Thank you so much for being honest!<strong> She is awesome and deserves a cookie *gives said cookie*

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><p>I would really appreciate it if you guys who didn'tdon't review would leave a review! You can leave an anon one if you're too lazy to sign in. Just don't say 'update soon' and nothing more x3 That annoys me. Obviously. So! Review and I'll give _you _a cookie c:

I would also like to thank the people who have already reviewed^^

_jileysi_ (GRAMMYYYYYYYYYY *huggles* :3)

_wrinkleywhale_ (here's your new chapter ^o^ *huggles*)

_Miss. Cookie. Crumble_ (sweet name:D ...lol =u= don't you love my pun? c:)

_Snoessie_ (your name confuzzles me *^* but I like it:)

_Stormygio _(thanks for your enthusiasm!)

_Fezzesandbowtiesarecool_ (I know what your penname says xD don't know what a fezz is, though .-. I know it's the guy on That 70's Show, though! He's funny... *inwardly laughs to self*)

Thank you guys so much:D Is it too early to be thanking? I don't care, I already did! Love you all:)

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><p><strong>Disclaimer:<strong>Yes! I remembered! Omg x3 Uh, I don't own Death Note!

Yes. Yes, that was Innocent High Lindsey was singing. I know, I know... I'm incorrigible TT^TT BOTDF is just. so. goooooood x] ANYWAY. Innocent High is written and performed by Blood on the Dance Floor, elsethings I do not own. Oh, but _fuck_, I wanna' own those boys... =u= _I don't give a fuck if they're gay_! I will either turn them straight or grow a dick! You know, I actually had a dream I grew one o-0 Guess how old I was? Four! Yeah! And I was looking through Batman's eyes who ran up to me and watched xD Damn, I'm so screwed up :'3

WTF? I'M RAMBLING. SHIT. SORRY. XP

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><p>Please help an author in need and leave your constructive criticism!<p>

The bud-uhn be right dur

=u=

**V**

Merci~ \m/


	5. Happenings

**ANNOUCEMENT: **The charger for my lap top has _finally _stopped staying in the port ;-; And I won't be able to buy a new one for... *cough*cough*severalweeks*cough* ^^;; So, this story is officially on hiatus until I can get my bearings straight:\ Please read and review and wish me luck! Prayers are good, too. I hear God's a very nice man ;3 Um... so yeah. And also, I might be getting my permit tomorrow! Or Thursday! So, yeah! I'm going to be DRIIIIIIVIIIIIING! XDXDXDXD Yeah:3

Wish me luck on both fronts! Have a nice Reid and a nice day c:**  
><strong>

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><p><strong>-ChApTeR fIvE-<strong>

**hApPeNiNgS**

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><p>"So, what are these...are they 'sweat machines?'" MaeDae looked incredulous as she watched me jog on the treadmill.<p>

"Not exactly." I said in a quick inhale.

"Then what are they _exactly_?"

I kept up my pace, breathing heavily as I pumped my arms at my side. Looking over at MaeDae, I took in a deep breath, preparing myself for a lengthy explanation whilst killing my lungs.

"Hm... they're for exercise. To keep you healthy. What I'm on right now is called a treadmill. You walk, jog, and run on it. Next, I'm going to lift some weights with a machine. They're exercise equipment. Bet they didn't have this stuff back when you first came to Earth, huh?" I took a swig of water and then thought about what I had just said. How was it so easy to talk about this stuff like it was normal? Well, it was normal to MaeDae. I thought on it.

"No, they didn't. But the guy I haunted was pretty slim, so it doesn't really matter." MaeDae shrugged and looked around the large and bright fitness center. There were several people scattered randomly, some in groups going to spas, some by themselves, sweating like beasts. I was one of the latter.

"Who did you haunt last? And when?" I looked up at her, but then down again as I turned up the speed. The treadmill became louder as my feet hit it even harder. MaeDae seemed to think for a moment as she floated in circles around the empty treadmills surrounding me.

"His name was Teichi Notamura. He lived in northern Japan, owned a farm. I think it was... hmm... well, I know it was before _treadmills _existed," she looked at me as if that told me the answer. I laughed.

"Yeah, a lot of things came before treadmills, MaeDae. I wouldn't be surprised," I shook my head as she glared at me. "Anyway, why did you come to Earth last time?" I took another drink of my water, spilling a little on my shirt.

"I _actually _dropped my Death Note. He was boring as hell, too. I killed him within a week of picking up the notebook." She smiled as if it were a fond memory. I go rigid and nearly tripped over my own feet. Looking up at MaeDae, I could see her teeth as she smiled even wider at me.

And I use the word 'smile' for lack of a better term. It was an expression too twisted and grotesque for it to really be called a smile.

And that bloody _terrified _me.

"Y-you can do that?" Oh, yeah... I thought for a second, then remembered the rule in the Death Note about that.

"Yup. So, you better watch yourself, girl," she leaned in, smiling and dowsing my face in her fowl breath, "or I may just off you like poor Mr. Notamura." Wow, she had such a wide smile. It was absolutely scary. I reached up and turned the speed down to a quick jog. My eyes widened slightly as she gave a hearty laugh.

"But I like you so far, so you're good to- _Damn,_ I really need to stop spoiling my fun. You won't be as paranoid now..." _As if._ She seemed to mope, so I left her to it. I kept up my jog for another ten minutes, listening to music (bet you can't guess who I was listening to). I turned off the treadmill and turned tiredly for the weight lifting machines. I wanted to see if I could lift sixty pounds yet.

I pulled the hook up six weights and sat down, preparing for the butterfly of doom. I took a deep breath, prepared my arms, and pushed. I did about four sets before my arms were on fire and my shoulders ached and cried for mercy. MaeDae was laughing at my face, beat red and covered in a sheen of sweat, a look of contorted pain added for good measure. I set the weights back down to fifty, pouting and starting up again.

"Weak little girl, aren't you?" MaeDae chuckled.

"You should see Tatum. Twenty on a _good_ day," I smiled as I pushed the bars in front of me together. My shoulder blades ground against each other as I opened my arms. "Hey, MaeDae? Was I the first person to pick up your Death Note?" She looked at me skeptically.

"Yeah, why?"

"I was just curious."

"Oh, that reminds me," MaeDae smiled to herself and then looked down at me with a wicked grin. Uh-oh. "When are you going to use the notebook?" My arms went limp at this question. However, the weights slamming together certainly woke me up. I jumped at the loud crash behind me, catching the eye of several curious on-lookers. I smiled shyly and then started pulling the weights again.

I honestly had not thought about that.

"That implies that I invariably _will, _MaeDae," I tried to worm my way out of answering.

"_Are _you?" Yeah, only MaeDae would ignore half of what a person says just for the sake of conversation.

"I... I don't know." _Should _I? But it broke all of the laws of nature and humanity. Not to mention the government. Homicide was illegal no matter how you looked at it. It wasn't excusable. I looked on across the room, at a loss for words.

"Girl, you better make my time on this planet worth it," MaeDae threatened.

"Yeah..." I sat there for a few more moments. My breathing was fast and my body ached. I yawned, which was a bad mistake. I suddenly wanted comfort and rest, to get away from this stupid machine of pain and torture. I felt the weights weighing on me then. I groaned, slowing my pace. Another stupid decision. And then I started thinking about our conversation and what was said. I analyzed every word MaeDae said and why she might have said it. That's when I thought of the last thing she said. I stopped, turned, and made eye contact. It was easy to say she wore an, "oh, shit," look on her face.

"I wish you weren't a genius..."

"Why _are _you here, MaeDae?" I cocked an eyebrow. When I reached forty sets, I stopped. I leaned backwards and, resting against the cushion, moaned as I felt feathers dusting across my arms, replacing the pain with relief. Oh, getting done with exercise felt so good. Definitely one of the best feelings I could think of. Endorphines and all of that good stuff.

"The notebook slipped out of my hand." She spoke rather quickly.

"I find that highly unlikely."

"You think I'm lying, girl?" She became defensive.

"Well, yes, but I don't care about that. Lying is a part of... er... well, everyone lies," I shook my head and looked over at her, "what I want to know is why." I stood up, patting my face with my towel.

"The why's don't matter." She slowly followed me as I made my way to the locker room to the left of where I had been sitting. I looked behind me with a smirk.

"The why's mean everything, MaeDae. Now, what brought you to Earth?" I looked up at her, opening my locker. MaeDae stared off at the sky, seemingly nostalgic. I watched her distant eyes for a second more before calling her name, "MaeDae?"

"...Like I said. It doesn't matter." Her wings unfurled in a frenzy as she flew away. I heard two claps of the batwings, dirty wrappings pathetically covering them as well, before all was silent around me. I looked at the spot in the ceiling she had flown through, hoping that she might come back. I sighed and pulled my clothes from my locker, heading off to the showers.

I felt bad for upsetting MaeDae. I mean, it wasn't like she hadn't upset me, but what she felt just now... it was a genuine pain, something I had caused. But I shook those thoughts from my head (water slung from my hair because of this quick movement) and took a deep breath. Now was the time to go over everything I had just learned.

So, I was the first human to get the Death Note. Misa Amane's name was already written in it, so that meant a shinigami wrote it. Did MaeDae write her name? She could have written it before coming to Earth so she wouldn't die if it took somebody awhile to find the Death Note. That _could _be plausible. But then the subject of _why _she was here wouldn't be so sensitive. She obviously came here in a bit of a hurry. That means something happened to her. Something upsetting. Something she was just thinking about that was raw and new. If it hurt her that much, she would not have prepared for coming to the Human Realm. So, cross that off.

But why would she kill Misa? It was obvious she did because it was her Death Note. MaeDae didn't seem like the type to share, so... it couldn't be anything that Misa did. She was a human. What she did, millions of other people had done before her. Ergo, it didn't pertain to Misa herself. It pertained to MaeDae. _But how and why? _Okay... okay...

I turned around in the shower, washing out the shampoo.

Alright, I need to think outside of the box. I have to. This is not normal, so I can't think normally. This is not an average, every day event, so I can't think that way. I have to think outside of the box. Hm... wait... what if... what if there were multiple shinigami involved? Misa, MaeDae, and... X, for the sake of argument, the third shinigami.

"Oh, this doesn't make any sense!" I sighed and turned around, turning off the shower. I grabbed my towel and began toweling myself off, thinking about MaeDae, Misa, and X. It was too difficult to think of why MaeDae was here. There were too many variables, too many things to think about and consider. All I knew was that it upset MaeDae. I sighed, slipping on my jeans and a black hoodie over my quite tank top. I sighed disdainfully once more, standing up. "Bologna and crisps..."

I stepped outside and pulled my hood up to hide my terrible hair-do. I took out my cell phone and called Tatum.

"Hello?"

"Tater Tot~"

"Hey, what's up! You finished, eh?"

"Yup! Meet me at the post office," I started walking down the street, the post office close by.

"Yeah! See ya' in a bit, love." We hung up.

Walking down the street was calming. There was a clamor of people that I could lose my thoughts in and nothing to worry about. My Death Note was safely tucked away, Tatum was merrily ignorant, and I was happy and healthy as a horse. Everything seemed so perfect and easy. I smiled to myself.

_I use chopsticks, yes I do._

_I use chopsticks to eat you._

_Through your stomach_

_And up your spine_

_Through your skull,_

_Your brains are mine._

I smiled. Such an awesome band.

Since I took my time walking, Tatum actually beat me to the post office. She nearly knocked me over with her welcoming hug. I could have stood straight and over-powered her might, but I was really tired and so stumbled backwards.

"Man, you can't do that crap after I exercise, Tater! God, I'm so tired," she apologized and walked us into the office. As they spoke together quickly in Japanese, I couldn't help but lose myself in the sound of their voices, stuck inside my mind.

MaeDae was right. She was so, so right. I needed to do something with the Death Note. I couldn't just ignore it. I had to do _something _with it. But it was such a terrible concept; taking people's lives? That was just plain wrong! How could I justify murder? How could I make it okay? An evil boyfriend of Tatum's... an asshole... a thief... a drug dealer... a murderer... I snapped my head up, eyes wide as my thoughts took such a turn.

I could kill criminals.

Evildoers.

Those who abuse the right of life.

Cheaters.

Liars.

Rapists.

Homicidal psychos.

My mouth was slightly agape at this prospect. Something could be done about the injustice in the world. Besides being an officer of the law. No, I could do that _and _double as an agent of law. I could get twice as many criminals off the streets and in their graves where they belonged. No, more than- _so much more than twice. _I could write hundred of names in the course of a single year. That was hundreds of lives saved, hundreds of people protected. And then others would want to avoid death and do good themselves. It was conditioning and pressuring. They would feel the need to be good and do good.

My face broke out into a smile. I looked over at Tatum's back. She was busy signing papers for the TV. I could get _her _justice first. When I get home, after Tatum goes to work, I could use it and kill him. I could give her what she needs. Justice. To know that he couldn't get off with what he did. I smiled so, so wide.

"Alright Lindsey! I need your help with the TV!" She turned, a grand smile across her face, her pearly teeth shining. I couldn't help but mimic her.

"Yeah," I said kindly, "absolutely."

"By the way, I don't want to get the entertainment center and other stuff until tomorrow. That's alright with you, yeah?" The man behind the counter wheeled the large box to us with a scowl on his face.

"Blimey, it looks so heavy..." Tatum moaned, still stuck on the fact that her mother crazy-loved us.

"Totally." Together, we carried the box to the street. I'll tell you, not even carrying a seventy-pound box could hurt my smile. Even after all of the exercise I did that afternoon. And the price of the TV, too. None of that upset me. I had justice to look forward to and that just made my smile brighter and wider.

"You're chipper now, aren't you?" Tatum commented as we put the TV in the back of a cab, hoping in after it. I laughed.

"Mhm," she nodded in assent, resting her head on my shoulder and tapping her thighs to the beat of a song in her head.

Setting up the TV was easy enough. Everything was all said and done a few minutes after four. Tatum had forty minutes until she had to leave for the bar. I was off that night.

I clicked on the TV, trying to find a decent channel to watch. Tatum went into the kitchen to get a couple slices of cake for us. I plopped down onto the couch, remote in hand, lazily flipping past crazy Japanese people and talk shows, and others I didn't know or understand what the hell they were saying.

"Taaaater Toooot~ Where is my caaake, love?" I stretched out on the couch, relaxing. Yeah, I could so get used to coming home to this after class every day. Just chill on the couch for a couple hours. Oh yeah.

"Here, here! I'm working on it," she called back irritably. I stuck my tongue out at her as she came around the corner behind me with two plates. She set one on my stomach beside the remote, taking a seat at my stomach on the floor with her own slice. "Waf are joo waffing?" She spoke with her mouth full.

"Mm, just random things I find on here. I find television in general to be quite pleasant." She looked up at me with a weird look in her eye that cried, "buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurn witch, burn!" I shook my head and turned the channel.

"_...dozen criminals died today, all heart attacks. This is just a few out of the series of recent deaths over the last two days. Police refuse to make any statements of whether they're all connected or not. However, it seems obvious that somebody out there is sending these criminals to their graves... where they belong." _

I gaped at the news channel. No... no way. It couldn't be. That... there couldn't be another Death Note on Earth. Was it MaeDae? No, she wouldn't kill only criminals. She would kill anybody she needed to kill. No, this was somebody else entirely... and with the same motives as I. What the hell was happening? I looked around for MaeDae, wanting an explanation. But no! She was still gone!

Beneath me, on the floor, I saw Tatum's plate at her feet, cake smeared on her leg.

No.

No, no, no.

"Tatum-"

"They're going to get him... they're going to get him, Lindsey... they're going to get him..." I immediately bolted upright, my plate flying onto the arm of the couch at my feet, and dropped to my knees beside her. She was crying. Bawling like a baby.

"No, no, no, Tatum, they won't..." I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her in to my breast. How could she not _want _them to kill him? I simply held her as I seethed, not comprehending her thinking.

"They will, they will... you don't know that, Lindsey... you don't know..." I could feel my shirt soaked where her face was resting against me. "I forgave him, Lindsey. I forgave him. It's okay... it's okay, it's okay, it's okay. It's okay... _it's okay," _she was full out sobbing now, shaking uncontrollably, her grip unrelenting. I could only sit there and hold her, be there for her to pick up the pieces. It was this again. _This. _I couldn't stand reliving it. It tore me up as much as it hurt Tatum. Honestly, that was an exaggeration. It tore me up worse. Tatum forgave. Tatum could forget. I couldn't.

_I wouldn't._

"Tatum, shh, it's okay. Don't worry. He's in a different country, he's safe from them," saying safe made me want to puke. I wished he wasn't safe. I wish the person who had the Death Note would kill him slowly, painfully, drag it out for _days_. I knew I couldn't. I couldn't do it. Not when Tatum felt this strong an opposition about it. She didn't respond, merely cried harder. She cried for a few more minutes before getting up in silence and walking to the bathroom. I continued sitting, watching where she had disappeared around the corner somberly. A little tear slipped down my cheek.

"What's up with your friend?" I let out a great yelp and jumped to my feet.

"_What the hell!" _It was MaeDae. I took a great heave of breath, and then remember the tear on my cheek. I whipped at it violently, for some reason feeling self-conscious around MaeDae.

"What's up?" She smirked.

"Fuck you..." I breathed and picked up the remote, turning off the TV. I glared viciously at it, envisioning his face on the screen. Fuck, I felt like chucking the thing over the balcony.

"So, what's wrong with your friend? She looked pretty upset..." MaeDae glanced over at the wall, as if she could see Tatum.

"It was what was on the news..." I stayed quiet for such a quick second that I doubt MaeDae noticed. I decided I would test MaeDae. She already made me suspicious enough... if she answered as I thought she would... "about criminals being killed." MaeDae looked from me to the wall behind the couch where the bathroom was, and Tatum showering her pain away.

"Oh." her voice held no emotion, nothing to give anything away.

But I could tell so much in just that one word. That one sound, gasp, she was acknowledging something. The same thing that Tatum and I were acknowledging: the rape of Tatum by her brother nine years before.

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><p><strong>-EnD cHaPtEr FiVe-<strong>

**hApPeNiNgS**

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><p><strong>AN: **ZZZZZZZZZZZZZOMGGGGGGGGG OOOOOOO: Who expected that? XP And did anybody catch something MaeDae said that Lindsey didn't? It won't be obvious at all and I didn't even intend for it to come out that way x3 Not even I caught it until the third time I proof read this:P

Anywho, I honestly don't have too much to say in this A/N.. um... yeah x3

Wow, that's a shocker 0.0

Well, I signed up for the PSAT last week! So excited for that! Srsly 0.0 Hopefully I can get a decent scholarship. I'd need to do _really _good, though. Like... like _really _good to qualify xD So, wish me luck! I don't take it til the twelfhth;sdcuasdl hate that word-number xD 12! The 12th of October is when it happens x3 ANYWAY. Thanks for reading:) Please leave a review c:

Did that extend it enough? xP

And I bet Beyond and Light fall under the 'homicidal psycho' category Lindsey thought up, huh? Whatever. Beyond is just plain fuckin awesome and Light is justified. :P

**B/N: Um…Light is justified in killing the greatest detective in the world, potentially upsetting the very center of the crime punishment in the world, letting his own father be killed, attempting to murder Near, using (And dare I say ABusing) Mikami and Misa (Takada can burn in Hell. She killed MELLO!), allowing his supporters to kill people who simply don't agree with them (Matt surrendered, god dammit!) and being an all around dick? Yeeeah…not very justified to me O.o But whatever floats yer boat, girlie :D**

**And, to the dear readers, the review button is right down there, Don't be lazy XD **

(Thank you:3) Yeah, well... all he wanted to do was cleanse the world. I praise that part. He willingly gave up his own sanity to purge the wold of evil and make it a better place for everyone. I don't like how he wanted to be the _god _of the new world or the fact that he _killed _innocent people to reach his goal, but he _had _to do it. What else could he have done? I mean really? He had no other choice.

I could _soooo _rant on about this, but I won't bore you guys xD ANYWAY.**  
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><p>Thank you so much <em>InkheartFirebringer <em>for your awesome sauce review! You already know the emotions it struck within me, but whatevs xP

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><p>Thanks again Ava for being so awesome and beta'ing this story for me xD I know it sorta sucks so I'm happy you're sticking around for it:) Also, I appreciate you finally getting a Facebook:D *huggles*<p>

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><p><strong>DISCLAIMER: <strong>i keep a'membering! :DDD I don't own Death Note or BOTDF. They own themselves x3 Except Death Note. Tis owned by Ohba&Obata-chan :3 Yes, I refer to them affectionately. Got a problem with it? *angry fish face*

**Review! ***les coeurs a les tous*

**V**

Merci~ \m/


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